Better Late Than Never
by solitaryloner
Summary: The sequel to Romeo and Cinderella! You promised that you wouldn't care for anyone else...that you had moved on. But you broke your promise in the end, didn't you? So surely you wouldn't mind if I broke mine too? You can care for her now if you wish - there's no need for you to bother about who I have feelings for. You don't need to care about that anymore. LenXMikuXDell.
1. Chapter 1

_Love (noun): 1. A feeling of great fondness or enthusiasm for a person or thing._

_Love (noun): 2. Strong attachment with sexual attraction towards the other._

_Eternity (noun): A time without end._

_Fairy-tale (noun): 1. An old, or children's, story of fairies or magic, with a happy ending._

_Fairy-tale (noun): 2. Lies._

_We silently promised to love each other for an eternity...is that nothing but a fairy-tale, then? Is all of this nothing but lies?_

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''Cinderella! Did you hear the news?'' Gumi rushed to the teal-haired girl, who was petting the prince's favourite horse, Frost. Cinderella, or as she preferred to be known as, Miku Hatsune, blinked and looked up at the other girl.

''No...'' she ceased patting Frost's flank. ''I haven't heard anything ever since I woke up this morning. Except for Len sleep-talking. He's still asleep, I don't know why,'' Miku pouted. ''He slept the same time as I did, last night.''

''There's been a murder! Or two murders, to be more specific. And a third woman has disappeared. Don't you find it strange?'' Gumi said excitedly, but in a low whisper.

''Really?'' Miku looked at Frost, and the pure white mare snorted back at her. She smiled at the horse - she and Frost were learning to get along with each other. Finally. It hadn't been too long ago that she and that horse had absolutely loathed each other. Miku shuddered. ''Who were the victims?'' she asked curiously.

'''Your step-sisters,'' Gumi chirped, and Miku froze. ''Anastasia and Lucinda Hatsune...and your step-mother disappeared too. There's no trace of her at all.''

Miku was now hanging onto every single word which escaped the servant-girl's mouth. ''Did they catch the murderer? And how did Anastasia and Lucinda die?''

Saying their names, the names of her step-sisters, who were the two masterminds behind the deaths of her parents, left a bitter taste in her mouth. She hated Anastasia and Lucinda, she really did, but hearing of their deaths left nothing but a feeling of hollow victory.

She was glad that they had been murdered. There was no love lost between her and her step-sisters, and it was fitting that the two young murderesses had been killed, themselves. It was a fitting fate. But Miku found herself wishing that she herself had a hand in deciding the way they died.

''No...someone slit their throats, apparently. And worse,'' Gumi shuddered. ''They were found dead in their rooms. Someone went to visit them, but no one answered the door, and that was strange because none of the three women had been seen outside. So people scaled the gates and saw blood on the kitchen floor, through the windows...''

''How did blood get onto the kitchen floor, if they were killed in their rooms?'' Miku blinked, wondering whether her step-mother...no, her mother, was okay. She had just found out that the woman she had always regarded as her step-mother was her actual birth mother, and Miku found that she somehow cared for the woman. Though Miku didn't know her well.

Back when she had been serving her step-family as a slave, her step-mother had always stayed by the sidelines, allowing her two daughters to decide everything. Miku's lips curled into a sneer - dear Anastasia and Lucinda, finally killed by someone's hand.

''It was messy, I heard,'' Gumi bobbed her head. ''Whoever it was who saw the blood, they entered the house to look for the three women...the killer made quite a mess,'' she shuddered, looking nervous.

''There was blood splattered everywhere in their rooms,'' she continued. ''The blood in the kitchen was shaped like a shoe print - I guess the killer stepped in some blood when he was leaving. The shoe prints were everywhere.''

Miku frowned. Shoe prints? Now that she recalled, she had seen some dark red, coating the base of Len's boots, when she had woken up this morning...her eyes narrowed. She was going to ask her beloved fiancé about this.

''I would like to have seen that,'' she mused. ''Their dead bodies, I mean. I find it rather hard to believe that they're dead...''

Gumi's green eyes softened. ''I forgot. You don't like them, do you, Cinderella?''

''Not really,'' Miku answered absently. ''I loathe my step-sisters with a passion, and I adore the fact that they've been murdered. I just hope my step-mother is fine,'' she frowned again.

''She disappeared, apparently. There wasn't any blood found in her room, not like how it was for Anastasia and Lucinda...so she probably didn't die. Perhaps the murderer spared her. Though I don't know why they would do such a thing.''

''What are you two talking about?'' a sleepy voice drawled from behind them, and Miku and Gumi turned, Gumi paling in fright.

She still hadn't got over the anger they had seen on Len's face, that time he had caught them spying on him while at Budapest. She bobbed a nervous curtsey, stammering a greeting to the yawning prince. He nodded in acknowledgement, blue eyes fixing on Miku.

''Nothing, Len,'' Miku smiled coolly. ''We're just discussing a murder. Apparently, my step-sisters have been found dead in their rooms, and my step-mother has disappeared. Isn't that just delightful?'' she blinked at him, trying to keep the sarcasm out of her tone.

He didn't even bat an eyelid. ''That's great. I mean, aren't you happy about that?'' he shrugged lazily, moving closer to Miku and Frost. Languidly, he reached out a hand to pet his horse's nose, and Frost nuzzled into his palm, whinnying at her master. ''Good girl,'' he whispered, and Miku rolled her eyes.

''Happy? I'm ecstatic,'' she smiled sweetly at him. ''I just wonder who was the kind soul who did such a thing. I would like to thank them.''

''And I'm sure they would be more than delighted to receive your thanks,'' his blue eyes slid over lazily to meet her emerald ones. ''Anyway, your step-family is finally out of your life. Aren't you happy about that?''

''Of course I'm happy,'' her words were genuine. ''I just wish I could've done something to them as well. I hated them so much...''

His blue eyes flickered with surprise. ''Didn't you say yesterday that you were too tired to think of having revenge upon your step-sisters?''

''That was yesterday,'' she said coyly, glancing up at him from beneath her long eyelashes. His cerulean blue eyes narrowed suspiciously down at her. ''I'm as vengeful as ever, today. It's a new day, and a new beginning.''

Gumi quietly left at this point, though neither Len nor Cinderella noticed - they were too busy trying to intimidate each other. Despite that one night they had shared in Budapest...no, it didn't mean that Miku was going to start fawning over him. She was independent. And she was never going to admit that she liked him, because love was a double-edged sword.

Not that Len was acting all kind or anything - no, he was still his usual, arrogant self. And strange enough, she was getting used to that infuriating cockiness. ''You seem very interested in this whole murder business, aren't you?'' he asked slyly.

''Maybe I _am _interested, Len. Or maybe I'm just interested in finding out who the murderer is.'' she glared at him. He shrugged, grinning.

''Why? To thank them for it?'' he asked, that teasing grin still not leaving his face.

''No, to ask them where my step-mother is. And maybe to thank them for it,'' she admitted grudgingly. He pursed his lips.

''I don't think the murderer would know. Your step-mother wasn't around when he killed your step-sisters, you see. He doesn't know where she went - she was already gone, before he went to your house.''

Miku gaped at Len. ''I knew it! Who else would have killed Anastasia and Lucinda so brutally?'' her eyes narrowed at her betrothed. ''I don't know whether I should kill you or kiss you for this. But don't think that this is going to make me like you any better,'' she added.

He grinned roguishly. ''I never expected that,'' he said smoothly. ''But I'd like that kiss.'' His blue eyes darkened as he glanced away. ''I just hated how much they hurt you,'' he whispered, staring at the ground. ''You don't deserve to be hurt like that.''

She was startled by his unexpected words. She never would have expected Len to do something like that. To avenge her for her parent's deaths. ''Thank you,'' she mumbled, suddenly unable to look him in his eyes. Gently, his fingers reached out, tilting her face up to look at him.

''I'm your fiancé. And it's my job to make sure you're safe,'' his eyes searched hers. ''We can fight against this all we want, but we can't deny that we're attracted to each other.''

She didn't know how to respond to that simple, blatant truth, so she kept her mouth shut. Len still confused her, with his behaviour. Sometimes he was cocky, but at other times he could be incredibly sweet. And she had to wonder - had he really forgotten about his first love? Had he forgotten about Juliet?

Her breath caught as he continued staring intently at her. Miku didn't struggle against his hold, as she once would have - maybe she finally trusted him enough to let him hold her. She found that strange..._I guess I really have fallen for him._

''I don't want you to ever get hurt, and I won't let anyone get away with harming you. Emotionally or otherwise,'' he breathed, blonde hair falling into his mesmerising eyes. His thumb rubbed against her cheek, and then slowly, he leant down, his lips about to meet hers -

''Ahem,'' someone cleared their throat behind them, and Len sprang away from her, a growl reverberating deep in his throat. Miku shook her head, feeling strangely disappointed.

''What do you want, Father?'' Len said stiffly as he realised who the person was. The purple-haired king grinned sheepishly, running his fingers through his long hair.

''Sorry for interrupting,'' he said cheerfully. ''I just need to tell Len something!'' his pale blue eyes met Len's aggravated ones. ''Your cousin is coming to visit.''

Len cocked an eyebrow. ''You came to specially look for me just to tell me this?'' he asked sarcastically. The king frowned at him.

''I wouldn't bother if it was one of my relatives, coming to find you.'' He hesitated. ''This cousin is from your side of the family, Len.''

Len stiffened. ''My family? Why would anyone from my family come here to visit me? I've been disowned, haven't I?'' his voice was bitter.

''This cousin wouldn't care about your family situation with your father. At least, I don't think so. He's impartial and fair, with a sharp sense of business. He's here to discuss matters with me, and to visit you while he's at it.''

Len's frown faded, becoming a look of curiosity. ''Really? Who is it?'' he asked. Miku looked back and forth between the king and his adoptive son, wondering which cousin it was too. She hadn't even _known _that Len had cousins.

''Dell Honne,'' the king stared at the startled Len, whose blue eyes had widened at the name. ''Does that sound familiar to you?''

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_**Solitaryloner: **After a two-months hiatus on this story, I am back! *cheer* anyway, would someone please review this and tell me if there's any inconsistency in Miku's personality? I think Len is as bipolar as ever, but I'm not so sure about Miku...it's been too long since I last wrote about her as Cinderella._

_And I don't want to suddenly change Miku's personality from 'Romeo and Cinderella'. So yeah, I hope her personality is still the same...I can't really remember how it's supposed to be like...oh my._

_ANYWAY, enough about character inconsistencies. Dell is coming, how many of you expected that huh? :P This will be a joy to write. I'll try to update as fast as the rate I updated 'Romeo and Cinderella', though it'll still be a little slower because of studies and exams...sorry about that._

_And I wonder whose thoughts were those, at the very start of the chapter? Hm..._


	2. Chapter 2

''Who's Dell Honne?'' Miku asked her husband-to-be. His blue eyes flicked up to meet hers, still looking faintly unsettled. They were sitting together in their room, her on Len's lap. After finding out from the king that his cousin was coming, Len seemed to have retreated into a permanent state of shock.

''My cousin,'' he now said absently. ''I haven't seen him for a long time. A really long time. He's a distant cousin, from my father's side. Even more distant than Rin was.''

Rin...she had been one of Len's distant cousins too, now that Miku remembered. ''Is Dell related to Rin, too?'' she asked.

Len shook his head. ''Rin was related to me from my mother's side. Dell was my father's sister's cousin's nephew...or something like that,'' he frowned. ''Anyway, like Gakupo had said, Dell is just and fair. He doesn't have any bias against me. Thankfully.''

The bitterness in Len's voice made Miku decide against probing any further into his family affairs. His arms, which were looped around his waist, tightened. She placed her hands over his. ''So when is he coming?''

''Given that Gakupo told me today?'' Len frowned. ''Tomorrow, probably. Gakupo loves to drag things out until the last possible moment. Without being labelled as irresponsible.''

''So that will be interesting,'' Miku murmured, thinking. She heard Len chuckle - she could feel his laughter, against her back.

''Why? Are you interested in...meeting my cousin, Miku?'' he teased. ''Romeo and Cinderella...perhaps now Cinderella will be searching for her Prince Charming?''

Miku narrowed her eyes, twisting around to stare at him. His blonde hair was falling into his cerulean eyes as he smiled at her, that familiar cocky smile. ''Don't joke about that. I just might do such a thing,'' she said, semi-threateningly.

''That's terrible,'' Len drawled, gaze drifting heavenwards. ''You just love to go around breaking people's hearts. Namely mine.''

''You don't even have a heart to begin with,'' she muttered, and he smirked, raising an eyebrow. His fingers reached up to brush down the skin of her cheek, and she tried to bite his finger.

''So feisty still,'' he laughed softly. ''I would have thought you would be a little more...mellow, after accepting the fact that you have to marry me. It greatly saddens me that it's not happening, my sweet Cinderella.''

''I still don't want to marry you,'' Miku thought that the lie sounded convincing enough. Even after all the time they had spent together, she still felt more comfortable exchanging barbed insults with the prince, than whispering sweet nothings into each other's ears.

It just wasn't in their natures to be affectionate. Romeo...Len had died a little inside, after seeing his former love's body lying by the riverside at Budapest, staining the river crimson. Even three years later, Miku still wasn't sure if his heart had totally got over her.

As for Miku herself...ever since young she had learnt that one couldn't trust their emotions. Especially not love. She learnt from the mistakes of others - that love brought nothing but pain and misery. Love could be beautiful, but it also could be twisted and ugly.

Love could cut deeper than any blade, and she didn't want to risk that happening to her. Not until she was sure whether Len was totally over Rin. Even now, sometimes, she still glimpsed sadness in his cerulean eyes. Even after the night they had shared, in Budapest...

His eyes narrowed at her. ''You really broke my heart, this time,'' he proclaimed. ''My own fiancée doesn't want to marry me. Joy.''

She squirmed in his arms, trying to get away from him. ''You're still incredibly annoying,'' she mumbled, and he pulled her back to him with ease, his cinnamon-scented breath washing against the skin of her neck. She shivered.

''And sometimes, I still hate the way you make me forget everything,'' he whispered into her ear, and she stilled. ''Even if I don't want to forget. And when I want to forget...'' his fingers caught a lock of her long, teal hair, looping it behind her ear in a strangely affectionate gesture, ''I can't remember anything but your touch and the feel of your lips on mine.''

She pretended to be disturbed, though secretly, inside...she thought she was rather thrilled. ''That's all you think about? You're such a pervert, Len. Thinking of nothing but the pleasures of the flesh. Honestly?''

He grinned. ''Well, it's the truth.'' The teasing light left his eyes. ''If I asked you to make me forget everything again, what would you do, then?'' he asked, voice intense.

''I...'' Would she allow the same to happen again? She didn't know. That time had been a night of weakness. Forced to remain so close to him for so long, she had gotten dizzy from his nearness, had wanted him - wanted him enough that she had succumbed to that desire for his touch. If she were thinking clearly...it wasn't that she regretted it. And it had been...nice. But she wasn't sure if she'd do it again.

''Never mind, then,'' he continued in that same soft whisper. ''If you're not sure, then never mind all that.'' She thought she saw a trace of pain in his cerulean eyes, but it disappeared before she could be sure.

''Are you sure you've forgotten, though? Even after that night we shared?'' she asked softly. ''You told me that you wanted to forget - but did you actually manage to do such a thing?''

He hesitated, uncertainty flickering in his eyes, and she glanced away from him, not wanting to hear his answer. She was spared, however, by someone knocking on the door. ''Come in,'' Len called, voice back to its familiar confidence.

Miku wondered what that uncertainty had meant. Either he hadn't managed to forget Rin, that she still held a place in his heart...or he wasn't sure. He wasn't sure if he had forgotten, he wasn't sure who took a greater place in his heart? Juliet or Cinderella?

_Do I really want to force him to make such a decision, though? I can't deny that I care for him...though I try not to let it show._

Gumi walked in, eyes downcast. ''Prince Romeo, your cousin has arrived. Earlier than expected. And he brought a friend along,'' Gumi's eyes flicked to the side, avoiding both Miku and Len's stares. ''Someone you ought to see.''

''Dell's early,'' Len muttered. ''But I'm not surprised. Dell's always early - well, he's Dell, after all. And he's probably still addicted to coffee,'' Len shook his head.

Miku stared up at him. ''So shall we go and meet your cousin and his friend, then?'' she asked, squirming a little in his arms once more. He glanced down at her, startled.

''Oh. Right. We should.'' He let her go, and she slid off the bed, stretching - she was stiff from having remained in the same position for so long. She looked behind her, and Len was watching her with an unreadable expression in his cerulean-blue eyes.

Slowly, he got up from his bed. ''Lead the way then, Gumi. It's been a long time since I last saw my cousin - I wonder how he has changed?''


	3. Chapter 3

Miku followed after Len as he left their room, heading towards the gardens, where Gumi had said Len's cousin would be. Gumi trailed after Miku, making Miku wonder - why was she so nervous? And why should Len have to see his cousin's friend? It didn't make any sense.

Len threw open the door which led to the gardens, striding purposefully through it, and Miku exchanged a curious glance with Gumi. The blonde prince exhaled audibly as Miku peeked out from behind him, into the gardens. There was a boy there, maybe a year older than Len himself was, and she blinked.

His back was facing her as he stared at some of the flowers in the gardens. Miku knew, first-hand, exactly how overwhelming the flowers could be - when Len had first brought her into the gardens to talk to her, on the night of the second ball, the intoxicating perfume had made her feel faintly giddy, it had been so strong.

She saw, however, that the boy had silver hair, tied up into a small ponytail just like Len's was. She wondered at that - he definitely wasn't old enough for his hair to be all silver like that...then again, she was in no position to comment, given the unique colour of her own hair. At least silver was still an actual hair colour. No one ever had teal coloured hair, like hers.

''Dell,'' Len called out, his long, slender fingers curling discreetly into fists at his sides. Miku noticed the tense action, and she cocked her head curiously. ''It's been a while, hasn't it?''

At the sound of his name, Len's cousin whirled around, a faint smile tugging at the edges of his lips. Miku jerked back, her heart beating rapidly in nervousness - he had crimson eyes. Eyes the colour of freshly spilled blood, lethally cold eyes which didn't seem to match the warm smile on his lips. ''A while is an understatement, isn't it?'' he asked back, tilting his head to one side.

His voice was a lot like Len's, but lower. And he looked like Len too - save for the crimson eyes and the silver hair, they could have passed for twins. Their features were really rather similar - the resemblance was, frankly, quite unnerving to her. Len smirked at his cousin, moving closer to clap him on the shoulder. It was an affectionate gesture, yes, but Miku saw that Len's eyes had frozen over.

''What business deal do you have in mind for my father?'' Len drawled, his blue eyes trained intently on his silver-haired cousin. Miku and Gumi kept well out of their little reunion, standing at the side with their gazes fixed on the grassy ground. Dell hadn't appeared to have noticed the two of them yet.

''Your father?'' Dell yawned, shrugging. ''Which father are you speaking of, Len? The king...or Lord Kagamine?'' he exhaled softly, a knowing glint in his eyes.

''That man is not my father,'' Len gritted out, and Miku winced at the barely restrained fury in his voice. ''I don't understand why you and he are on such excellent terms. That man is a greedy fiend who seeks only to increase his influence and obtain more wealth for his own gains,'' he added, tone darkening.

Dell stepped away from Len, crimson eyes cool and distant. ''Nevertheless, he is a good business partner, and I will not give up a lucrative deal just for your feud, Len.''

''I don't expect you to do that,'' Len ran his hand through his thick blonde hair, glancing at the ground. ''I know you want to earn more money and all that from your businesses,'' he snorted. ''Even if it means consorting with men like my _dear father_,'' Len sneered the words out.

Dell smirked. ''That's your problem, Len. You don't know how to place grudges at the back of your mind and work towards your goal. And that is sure to bring you down, one of these days. It's not...good, to mix personal life with your work life. Highly unprofessional.''

''Whatever you say, Dell,'' Len muttered sullenly. ''Where's the little friend you brought along this time? Your fiancée, is it?'' Len's voice was laden and _dripping _with sarcastic humour.

Dell snorted, laughing. His silver hair glimmered under the sun, the same way Len's blonde hair did - but Miku wondered what his hair would look like, under faint, ethereal moonlight. Would it shine like spun silver? Strangely, the silver hair didn't make Dell Honne look old - it complemented his features, rather. It was all very unique, to her.

''Me? A fiancée? Of course not, Len,'' Dell ruffled his silver hair, the same way Len did - the two cousins were rather similar, in terms of both looks and habits, Miku noticed. ''I'd never want to get tied down, not so young...we're both only eighteen. Isn't it rather early for the two of us to settle down?'' he grinned roguishly. ''I heard that you have a betrothed now, though?''

Len nodded sharply. ''Miku?'' he turned, his blue eyes gazing into her own emerald ones. His eyes softened a little, the ice in them seeming to melt slightly. Miku swallowed, shooting him a stare, then turned to blink at Gumi.

The green haired servant girl nudged Miku, whispering to her to go on. Miku swallowed once more, gliding over the dewy grass to stand next to the blonde prince. Dell's eyebrows lifted as he stared curiously at her. Miku looked back at him, feeling uncharacteristically shy.

''Your fiancée?'' Dell asked bluntly. ''She's quite...lovely, isn't she?'' he smiled at her, and hesitantly she smiled back at the silver haired boy. Len grinned, slinging his arm around her shoulders, an act which would seem normal with any other couple, but an act Miku knew to be borne of possessiveness.

''I know,'' was all Len said as he leant his forehead against hers. Miku shot him a confused look - which he ignored, as he slid his other arm around her waist. ''Jealous?''

''Who wouldn't be?'' Dell shrugged, glancing away. ''But since she's your fiancée...'' Dell shrugged again. ''I'm not that despicable.''

Len leant down so that he could whisper in her ear, in a voice low enough that the silver haired boy wouldn't pick up on it. ''Dell's a flirt. A really big flirt. And I don't want to risk losing you to him,'' he nuzzled into her neck.

She scowled a little at him. ''No excuse to act so possessively,'' she hissed at him. ''Cool down, Len. You're being paranoid.''

Dell looked amused. ''I agree with Miku,'' his crimson eyes met hers. ''Miku Hatsune, right?'' she nodded. ''Cute name,'' he commented, lacing his fingers together and placing his intertwined hands behind his head. ''I like it.''

''Or you could call me Cinderella,'' she added, semi-jokingly. She still wasn't used to strangers knowing her actual name - she had always introduced herself as Cinderella, in the past.

''And Len's your Prince Charming, then?'' Dell asked, voice a mix of curiosity and playfulness. Miku pretended to gag, avoiding Len's stare.

''No way,'' she replied cheekily. ''I'm being forced to marry him, you see,'' she stage-whispered conspiratorially. ''Personally, if I had a choice, I would never marry someone like him. He's terribly rude and selfish.''

Len glared at her. ''That's not true. We all know that you love me, sweet. Stop trying to deny it, Cinderella,'' he used the name she had once called herself by, and she shot him a stare.

Dell cleared his throat. ''Well, before things become awkward around here...'' he coughed. ''Rui? Where are you?'' he called out. Len and Miku exchanged a glance - Rui was probably the friend that Dell had brought along.

There was a faint rustling sound as the tall ferns behind Dell moved, and then a slender, petite girl stepped out from the greenery, standing shyly next to Dell. Dell smiled at the black-haired girl. ''This is my friend, Rui Kagene. Len, Miku, meet Rui...and vice-versa.''

Miku stared hard at the black-haired girl. Her hair was short, and she wore a sweet-looking grey hair band. Her eyes were the golden colour of warm honey. She was pretty, and cute - and she bore a strange resemblance to Len...

She glanced at Len, who was staring, shocked, at Rui Kagene. ''Rin?'' he whispered, and Miku's eyes widened in shock at the name. Dell blinked too, looking a little confused as Len continued staring at the slim girl. Rui stared right back at him, her eyes just as wondering as Len's.

Did Rui remind him of Rin? If so, what was he going to do about it? Hadn't Len claimed to have already forgotten about her?


	4. Chapter 4

Miku was cursing Len. That stupid, idiotic blonde had walked off with Rui Kagene...just because she looked like Rin! Who was his fiancée here, Miku or Rui? Because right at that moment, Miku was very open to the idea of just cancelling their engagement and running off.

Underneath that fury was a deep sadness, though - a sadness she tried hard to push away. After everything he promised her? That he had forgotten all about Rin? Right. Miku had seen from the helpless look in his blue eyes - he had been interested in Rui. And she refused to admit that it hurt...that she felt betrayed.

Well, she couldn't exactly be surprised. After all, it was _Len Kagamine..._the spoilt, rich little brat who was more known as _Prince Romeo. _Miku wanted to throttle him - that jerk! That arrogant, infuriating, hypocritical jerk!

Dell looked uncomfortable as Miku sat on one of the garden benches, glowering and tearing a poor, innocent flower to little pieces. ''Jerk,'' she muttered beneath her breath. ''How dare that imbecile just go off with her without any warning...just because she looks like Rin?''

''Maybe he was just being nice,'' Dell offered, tone awkward. There was a tense silence, and then Miku raised her head, her emerald eyes screaming murder. She smiled sweetly.

''Len? Nice? Those are two words that just simply don't go together,'' she crooned, glancing back down at the torn up flower. ''He has an agenda for everything he does - and I assure you, Dell, he is interested in your friend.''

At this point, Gumi hastily excused herself and exited the garden, leaving the silver haired man feeling strangely vulnerable. Miku, or Cinderella as she was also known, was the same age as he was, and she looked petite and delicate - yet she radiated a murderous aura which made him feel like his life was in extreme danger.

''He promised me he had forgotten about Rin!'' Miku suddenly screeched at the dying flower in her hands. Dell flinched. ''But when someone who resembles Rin comes along, he just takes off with her and totally forgets that he -'' she angrily ripped the flower apart - ''has a fiancée! I knew I shouldn't have agreed to marry him!''

''How _did _you end up becoming his fiancée?'' Dell asked, curious. He found it hard to believe that his cousin had such a fragile-looking...beauty, for his betrothed. The last he remembered, Len had been off pining for his dead girlfriend, Rin...what had happened to Len's moping?

''State affairs,'' Miku grumbled. ''There was some intrigue about me and my step-family...he was convinced I was my dead half-sister, and he proposed to me in a bid to get closer to me, so he could find out who I really was.''

Dell blinked. ''That sounds...interesting,'' he hedged. Miku snorted, shaking her head. Gracefully, she rose from the bench, and Dell watched, mesmerised by her elegant movements. Every single movement was fluid, like she was dancing - she was gorgeous.

He wanted to slap himself. This was Len's fiancée...even if Len _was _temporarily unavailable. Because he had run off with Rui. Dell knew he shouldn't have brought Rui along...but she had insisted, wanting to meet the royal family, and so he had brought her just to cease her incessant whining about it.

Rui Kagene was a childhood friend. He and Rui had both lived in Budapest, when they were younger. Dell always went to visit Len, who had been the Lord of Budapest's son then, and Rui had always tagged along, though she hid in the shadows, not daring to come out and talk to the two young aristocrats. She was a simple girl, the daughter of a flower seller.

Eventually, Dell had moved away from Budapest, leaving Rui behind. That had been about six years ago. He had returned quite recently, having taken over his father's trading business, and he had run into Rui.

When Rui had asked him to bring her to the royal palace, Dell had agreed. He hadn't noticed the resemblance between Rui and Rin at the time - and he was regretting it now. If he had refused Rui, then Len wouldn't have lost his head and gone off with her. And his fiancée, Miku, wouldn't have been as murderous as she was now. To tell the truth, Dell found Miku Hatsune to be rather...intimidating.

For the sake of politeness, Dell extended a hand. Miku placed her delicate hand in his, then they turned and walked out of the gardens, Miku still muttering under her breath. Something about how she was going to lock Len out of his room so that he could go sleep with Rui...and other little curses that Dell really didn't want to listen to. Miku was fearsome.

But her skin was so soft in his hand. Dell shivered slightly, then averted his gaze. He couldn't think like that of an engaged girl. Even if Len was being a jerk and completely forgetting about her...he shook his head.

Miku glanced at him. ''How are you and Len related?'' she asked. Dell cocked his head, trying to untangle his complicated family tree.

''Len is my aunt's nephew's cousin's son...or something like that. We're not exactly very close cousins, in terms of blood ties.''

Miku laughed softly, her bad temper seeming to lessen slightly. ''Sounds complicated,'' she said teasingly, with a rueful shake of her head. He stared at her, an eyebrow raised as she pouted thoughtfully. ''You know, I'm sorry for being so...distraught just now. It's just that I really hate how he got all starry-eyed simply because Rui reminded him of Rin. He told me...that he was over her,'' she sighed, looking away.

''Len's an idiot to pine after a dead girl, when he has someone like you around,'' Dell told her, matter-of-factly. She giggled softly, then sighed again, shrugging her slim shoulders.

''I guess it's just hard for him to let go...'' her voice faded into a quiet murmur. ''I mean, he really loved Rin, I suppose. And now that he sees someone who looks like her? I can't say that I'm surprised, that he reacted this way...''

''But he's your betrothed. He should focus on you, and you alone,'' Dell's red eyes met hers, intense looking. ''If he doesn't, someone else might just steal you away from him. And when that happens, no amount of regret is going to change anything. It'll be too late.''

Miku laughed dryly. ''You're nice, Dell. Far nicer than how Len was, when we first met,'' she turned to smile at him. ''When I first saw him, I introduced myself as Cinderella. He...made fun of my name, then threatened me with a dagger when I did the same to his nickname.''

Dell exhaled. Why was he not surprised about that? ''Len can be a bastard at times.''

''I know,'' Dell was rather surprised that Miku didn't immediately leap to Len's defence. ''It makes me wonder what I see in him.''

''Well, I guess so long as you love each other, it's okay whether or not you know what's so attractive about the other.'' Dell frowned as he tried to comprehend his own convoluted sentence. ''Never mind. I don't even know what I'm talking about...''

''I understand,'' was all she said, startling him once more. She was surprising, this girl - she kept catching Dell off-guard. ''But we don't love each other. At least, I don't think so...''

He blinked when he heard that. They didn't love each other? Then...why were they engaged to each other? Was the whole thing an arranged marriage, like what she had said earlier?

Seeing the look on Miku's face, Dell decided that it was best for his own sake to not probe.

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Len stared at the girl next to him as they walked around the palace. Len was showing her around, and so far he noticed she was extremely quiet - speaking only when spoken to. Nothing like Cinderella...nothing like Miku.

''So, you said that you used to live in Budapest?'' Len blinked down at the black haired Rui. ''Did you happen to know someone called...Rin Kagamine? She was blonde. Blue eyes.''

''Yes...'' came Rui's soft-spoken reply. ''I knew her. She was a good friend of mine. I knew her through Dell - she and Dell were cousins, after all. And...I knew you through Dell, too.''

Len jerked, startled. ''You knew me? But...I've never even seen you before today,'' he said slowly, slightly suspiciously. He was intrigued by this girl, he couldn't deny that - but he had Miku. And he didn't want to give her up.

''I watched you when Dell went to visit you,'' she whispered, averting her golden eyes. ''I...I didn't dare to talk to you because you were the son of Lord Kagamine. You were a noble. I was nought but a simple flower seller.''

''Oh,'' was all Len could come up with. He shook his head, blinking. ''Well, that isn't important. It's just a difference in social status - it doesn't mean anything, not really,'' he smiled warmly at her. ''My fiancée...well, she was serving the Hatsune family as a servant, for a while. Though she does, admittedly, have noble blood. I didn't know that at the time, though.''

''She's pretty,'' Rui whispered. ''Cinderella. Miku Hatsune. I've heard of her, in Budapest - they said that the son of Lord Kagamine had a betrothed, with teal hair and vivid green eyes. They say that...she was someone unparalleled in her beauty, that she was a gem and treasure that any sane man would want to obtain.''

Len's eyes narrowed. People had been speaking of his Miku in that way? He was definitely going to check up on that. He pushed the thought away, shrugging. ''You'd better not say that before her - she'd get a bigger head than she already has. She knows exactly how beautiful she is, so don't compliment her on that.''

Rui smiled and nodded. She reminded him so much of Rin, at that moment - but despite that, he wasn't affected. At least, he didn't think he was. He had kept his promise to Miku - he had got over Rin. And he wasn't going to break that promise any time soon.

''So, is there anything else you'd like to see, around the palace?'' Len asked his quiet guest. She shook her head silently, and Len cocked his head. ''Then...we should return to where the others are at, then,'' he mused.

They turned, walking back the way they came, back to the extensive palace gardens. There was silence between them the whole time, and Len felt strangely comfortable around this girl. She didn't fill the air with needless chatter, like other girls he had spoken to before.

But she wasn't Miku, and he would remember that. Walking around a corner to reach the gardens, he glanced up - and then he froze. Rui, not paying attention, continued walking and bumped right into Len. She skittered back, apologising, but Len didn't listen or react.

What on earth was Miku doing, holding Dell's hand and laughing like that? Laughing so cheerfully, so freely - it had taken her forever to loosen up to that extent, around Len. Instantly, jealousy flickered through him - stinging and bitter. He shook his head, lips curling back from his teeth into a snarl. No. He wasn't jealous.

Striding forward, he stopped right before the laughing pair, and when he spoke, his voice dripped menace. ''So, what are you two laughing about without me?'' he hissed.

Miku abruptly opened her eyes, laughter fading. Dell glanced at him, expression surprised. ''Oh. Len. You're back.'' Quickly, Dell let go of Miku's hand. ''Done showing Rui around?''

''I don't think that he just showed her around,'' Miku muttered, obviously ignoring Len. There were traces of hurt in her voice, though she tried to hide it beneath her tough facade. Len gritted his teeth as he processed her words.

''I didn't do anything with Rui! Did I, Rui?'' he turned to face the black haired girl. She blinked, looking a little frightened, and quickly she shook her head, indicating denial.

''You probably told her to lie,'' Miku snapped at him, suddenly losing her cool. She walked away from Len, her movements fast and angry, and casting a helpless look back at Len, Dell hurried off after her. Len growled, a low sound.

Since when had Miku become so close to his cousin? And why was she being so damn suspicious anyway? Didn't she trust him to speak the truth? He wouldn't break his promise to her! Casting Rui a faintly apologetic glance, he went after the pair, managing to catch up with Dell. Scowling, he hit his shoulder.

''What's happening between you and my fiancée?'' Len snapped. Dell stared back at him, a quizzical expression on his face.

''Nothing,'' he answered, sounding genuinely confused. ''We're just friends. And anyway, she's angry now - can't you tell? We need to catch up with her before she does something like destroying the throne room...or anything like that.'' he continued, sounding worried now.

Len blinked. Dell had known Miku for the space of ten minutes. How did _he _know her so well? Miku was _Len's _fiancée, not his! And it wasn't like Miku opened up easily - so how did Dell know her and her personality so well?

Len admitted it - he was jealous. Jealous of his cousin. Why did Miku open herself up to him so easily? She hadn't treated Len that way when they had first met - she had been so hostile. He remembered, and that memory was driving him mad. ''If you so much as touch her, Dell -''

''I don't have time to listen to your threats,'' he snapped, interrupting Len halfway through. Len withdrew, startled, and Dell brushed him off, continuing down the hallway.

No, Len wasn't happy about this. Not at all. His fingers clenched slowly into fists - he had lost one of his beloveds before. He wasn't going to lose another - especially not when the girl in question was _his _Miku Hatsune. Especially not when she was the Cinderella to his Romeo.


	5. Chapter 5

Miku ignored Len, even while he was shouting at her through the locked door for her to open the...well, door. Miku folded her arms and just sulked, sitting cross-legged in the bed.

Her bed. Len's bed. Their bed. Well, Len could go and sleep in a guest room today, on a separate bed from hers, because she was not going to allow him inside the room. Not until he had properly apologised to her. All he had been doing for the past five minutes was just yell at her to open the door - it was very rude of him. Even if he was a royal prince, used to getting his own way. He could at least say please.

Miku realised that she was acting like a spoilt little brat, but then she couldn't help it. Her? Jealous? _No, she wasn't jealous. _Len was the prince, and he could do whatever he liked. He could go and fool around with Rui. Miku didn't care at all, not in the slightest. Why should she care? She didn't like him, not at all. He was just...her fiancé. She had no feelings for him, no genuine feelings, none whatsoever.

''Look, I never did anything with Rui! Stop being so jealous and just open the damn door already! You can't just lock me out of my own room!'' Once again, Len was shouting at her.

Miku snapped. ''I am not jealous, Len!'' she yelled back at him. ''You can go and have fun with Rui! Don't deny it - she reminds you of Rin! I've seen the look in your eyes when you stare at her!'' She then fell silent, satisfied that she had made her point. There was a stunned peace for a while, and she enjoyed the quiet. While it lasted. He would start yelling again soon.

Sure enough, he responded - it just wasn't in the angry way she had expected he would. ''Oh, look. Someone's in denial about their jealousy,'' Len's voice was droll. ''Really, Miku? I never pegged you down for the jealous type.''

''I repeat,'' she huffed, ''I am not jealous. Because I do not like you. You're the very bane of my existence, Len Kagamine, and I honestly regret the day I ever agreed to marry you.'' Because if she had refused, she wouldn't be feeling so confused about her emotions now.

Then again, if she hadn't agreed to marry him, she would still be under the thumb of her stepsisters. And Anastasia and Lucinda would still be alive. Perhaps it was good for her that she had agreed to marry him. But he didn't need to know that she actually felt that way.

''You break my heart, my dear, sweet Cinderella,'' Len's voice was now laden with sarcasm. Miku could picture the blonde prince, wearing a look of frustration, standing outside the door tapping his foot. She knew him that well - and she hated to admit to that. ''How about you let me in so that we can discuss our little issues in a proper, civilised manner?''

''No,'' she answered stubbornly, pouting a little as she continued sulking. And yes, she was still behaving like a little child who hadn't gotten her way. There was a dark laugh, coming from the other side of the door - and then the door shuddered as Len hit the door. Hard.

He had probably just kicked it with his boot. Which meant that yes, he was very frustrated. Normally, Len wouldn't do anything to destroy his own property. Especially not his room door. ''Even if you don't want to talk to me, Miku, this happens to be my room. You can't just lock me out. Where would I sleep, then?''

''In a guest room,'' she called back, matter-of-factly. There was a low growl in response to her suggestion, and she smirked. She had _completely _no idea why Len was so dissatisfied with the idea - it seemed fine to her. Note the sarcasm with which she was thinking.

''Why don't you go and sleep in a guest room? I want my room back. I was kind enough to share my room with you, and this is how you repay me?'' Len sounded even more frustrated.

Miku continued smirking. ''Well, in your own words...I am your fiancée, and there's no way you should allow your very own fiancée to suffer. If I went to sleep in a guest room, I would suffer - I have long forgotten how to sleep in a bed other than this one.''

Which actually happened to be true. There was blissful silence, and then a unexpected, faint clicking sound. Suddenly, the door swung open, and there stood Len, his blue eyes glaring daggers at her. Miku puffed out her cheeks. She knew that he was bound to get in, eventually.

He returned the dagger he had used to pick the lock with to the holder strapped to his hips. Len apparently had some rather extensive knowledge when it came to lock picking. ''You just don't want to talk to me. Because you're jealous,'' he said smugly, in response to her previous words. Miku gritted her teeth.

''Again, I repeat. I am not jealous. Get that into your amazingly thick skull.'' She rolled her eyes, then turned away from him, staring at one of the walls of his room. His room was ridiculously huge, and it exuded an air of ostentatious wealth and luxury. Judging from his room alone, it was simple to tell that the prince was a pampered one, someone who always got what he wanted. Well, he wouldn't be getting her.

She jerked back as his arms wrapped around her waist, him resting his chin on the top of her head. As usual, he had managed to sneak up on her. She wanted to struggle, but his arms held her tight, and she couldn't move an inch. ''Cinderella,'' he murmured in her ear, causing her to stiffen. As always, her name flowed like silk on his tongue. His voice was amazingly velvet, soft and sensuous - and the effect he had on her, with his voice, was astounding.

''Let go,'' she hoped he couldn't hear the faint quiver in her voice. His fingers reached up, caressing her cheek, and then he turned her head around so that she had to look at him.

''Not any time soon,'' he breathed, his cerulean eyes searching hers. ''It took me some time to find you. Dell and I were searching for you all over the palace, before I realised that you might be here...which was rather foolish of me.''

She blinked, slightly more interested now. ''Dell?'' she asked, letting her curiosity seep into her voice. ''He was looking for me?''

She watched as Len scowled, the cerulean blue of his eyes darkening slightly. ''Yes. He was looking for you along with me. Why do you care?'' he asked sharply, and inwardly she smirked. So Len didn't like that she showed any concern for his cousin? How interesting.

''Why, is there anything wrong with being interested in what is going on?'' she asked sweetly. ''You sound jealous, Len. Surely you're not envious that I asked about Dell.''

Len met her gaze evenly. ''Yes. I'm jealous, and I don't like it.'' He smirked as she stiffened, startled by the ready admission. ''Unlike you, I am not embarrassed to admit that I don't like it, when I see that you're interested in someone other than myself. Because you're mine.''

''I am not yours,'' she said indignantly, though a little part of her was secretly thrilled by the claim of possession. ''Human beings are not commodities which you can claim to own. I am not your, or anyone else's slave, you know.''

He chuckled, the sound husky and low. She hated to admit it, but his laugh made her want to shiver. ''If I told you that I wanted you to be mine, would you agree, then?''

She didn't know what to say. Instead, she just narrowed her eyes at him and pulled away. His grip on her had loosened, and she could finally tug herself away from him. Folding her arms, she tossed her head, her teal hair falling over her shoulders, all the way down to pool on the bedspread. ''Definitely not.''

''You sound like you're in some denial,'' Len said bluntly, his cerulean eyes glimmering with faint amusement. She scowled at him.

''Go away and leave me alone,'' she muttered. ''I do not wish to see you right now,'' her green eyes darted up to meet his, and she arched an eyebrow. ''Perhaps you should go and visit Rui...and I can go and see Dell. He is much nicer to me than you are, after all.''

Then, before she even had a chance to react, she found herself being knocked down onto the soft mattress, Len's hands gripping her shoulders as she stared, startled, up at him. He was straddling her waist, his teeth bared down at her, and his cerulean eyes were narrowed, filled with hostility. A hostility not directed at her, but intimidating, nonetheless.

''You're mine,'' he slid a long finger down the curve of her neck, and she resisted the urge to tremble. ''And you would do well to remember that...won't you, my lovely Cinderella?''


	6. Chapter 6

''Get off me,'' she spat, jerking her head away from his finger. He smirked down at her, a questioning light in his cerulean eyes - there was a slyness in his expression, a slyness which she was sadly familiar with. And no, she didn't like that sly look any single one bit.

''Make me,'' he whispered, voice taunting. Her eyes narrowed as she started to struggle, trying to jerk him off her. He didn't even budge, the sly look in his slanted blue eyes becoming one of dry amusement - she hissed at him, feeling frustrated as she reached up to try and push the idiotic prince off her. In hindsight, that move had been an obvious mistake.

His fingers wrapped around her wrists, preventing her from even touching him. Jerking her arms up, he ran his tongue out against her slender wrists, over the place where her pulse thrummed, and she flinched at the sensation of his tongue against her skin. ''Pervert,'' she scowled, trying to wrench her wrists free of his grasp. Not that he allowed her to escape.

''I don't like seeing you being interested in Dell,'' Len suddenly declared, his blond hair falling into his eyes as he dipped his head down to stare at her. ''Sometimes, I wonder whether you're being interested in my cousin just so you could spite me about Rui. Then again...'' his voice took on a smooth tone, ''that wouldn't be too surprising now, would it be? People do say that there's no worse fury than a woman scorned.''

''I was not scorned, least of all by the likes of you,'' Miku rolled her eyes, glaring at him as her gaze flickered to the way he was straddling her waist. ''I? Scorned by you? I think not. If this is the way you would reject a woman, Prince Romeo, then I'd dread to think of how you would be like when you chase after a girl.''

''As if you didn't already know,'' Len scoffed. ''As much as I'd like to agree with the way you think, Cinderella, I can't help but feel that you're rather...jealous of Rui. Even if you do not intend to admit to it,'' his lips tilted up into a smirk. Miku glared at him some more - infuriating little brat, thinking that he was God's great gift to women...well, he wasn't. And she was going to make sure that he knew just that.

''I am not jealous of Rui Kagene,'' she spat up at him. ''You're free to fool around with her as you wish. After all, it's not any of my business - our marriage was an arranged one. You knew it, and I knew it. Were it not for the fact that I had wished to escape my step family, I would never have agreed to become your fiancée, Prince Romeo.'' Huffing, she looked away from him. ''Your cousin is so much kinder than you are.''

Smooth fingers touched her chin, then roughly he tilted her head back so that she had to stare up at him, her breath catching as she glimpsed the dark fury in his normally cool cerulean eyes. ''Stop comparing me to my cousin,'' he hissed, nothing like the playful, arrogant self he had been earlier. This was the murderous side of him - the dangerous half that she rarely ever saw. The side of him which scared her a little.

She had only ever seen this possessive side twice before. Once, when he had killed a man who had tried to rob and rape her, outside her late adoptive mother's favourite dressmaker's. Another time, when he had found out the truth about her heritage from the very lips of her now dead stepsisters. In both instances, the dark anger she had seen on his face then had unnerved her - she wasn't used to such sadistic maliciousness from the blond prince.

''Why should I stop?'' she challenged, though she knew that this was a rather foolish retort. While he was in this kind of mood, there was no telling what Len might possibly do, and how he would react to her. ''If I wish to compare you to Dell Honne, then I can do that. After all, you are not my master. I'm free to think about whoever I wish...even if it happens to be your cousin.''

''You want one reason why you should stop?'' he breathed, one of his hands sliding down the curve of her neck to her shoulder. His fingers dug into her delicate skin, and she held back a wince - his fingers were bound to leave a bruise, later. ''Because you're _mine,_'' his eyes narrowed. ''Do you dare to challenge my claim to you? Don't forget what happened that one night in Budapest...my sweet Cinderella.''

She flushed, her cheeks warming as she spat crossly at him. ''That was a mistake, and it shall not happen again,'' she seethed, wrenching her wrists free of his now slackened grip. ''I have...no idea what I had been thinking, that night. Don't think that it meant anything to me. And I know that you wouldn't care about it, either. It was nothing more than a night of dazedness, a night full of mistakes. I hate you for that.''

Unexpectedly, his smirk returned, and he leant close to her, his cinnamon scented breath washing lightly against her face. ''Well, I certainly don't hate you,'' he purred, a little too close to her for her comfort. ''Hearing you moaning my name, and seeing you completely naked on the same bed as me - you have no idea how much I loved that one night, and everything which you did to me then -''

''Len!'' she snapped, scowling as the warm blush spread over her face. Disgusting pervert. ''You are nothing more than a creep who spends far too much time thinking of carnal pleasures. I don't know whether or not anything about you deserves affection. Now get off me before you suffocate me, you disgusting moron.''

''Like I said, I'll get off if you can make me get off,'' he shrugged coolly, seeming completely unaffected by all the names she had just called him. She gritted her teeth, wanting to slap him so that he would at least hurt a little, but she knew that he would just catch her wrists again before she was able to hit his cheek. Stupid prince with his stupid, unnaturally fast reflexes. Why couldn't he be just a little bit slower?

She parted her lips, about to reply, but he evidently took that as an invitation to touch her, quickly dipping his head down so that his mouth covered hers. She blinked, shocked, as she felt his lips moving against hers. Either he had taken that chance to kiss her...or he just wanted to shut her up. Either way, it was working - her eyelids fluttered as she felt his skilled tongue exploring her mouth, tasting her thoroughly.

Did it mean something, if she always lost herself in his kisses and his touch? She kissed back, starting to feel giddy as she felt his hands fist the bedsheets on either side of her head, his mouth moving frenziedly against her own. She didn't want him to stop, though at the same time she did - she knew that he shouldn't be doing this. That she wasn't supposed to allow this. She was angry at him now, wasn't she?

But even if she had wanted to pull away, she couldn't - he had her trapped between him and the mattress, and she was unable to turn her head away. Which was a little bit of a problem for her, since the kiss had already dragged on for quite some time and she was beginning to feel her lungs burning from a lack of oxygen. Len seemed perfectly fine with the absence of air though, still tasting her lips with his own.

''Mm,'' she protested, voice muffled as she moved her lips, trying to speak. He instantly lifted his head, breathing hard, his blue eyes heavy lidded as he stared intently down at her. Her chest heaved as she sucked in deep breaths of air greedily, feeling the burn in her lungs lessen slightly as she was allowed to breathe again. This felt so much better...but not better than the intense kiss they had just shared.

No matter how much she hated the prince sometimes, she couldn't deny that whenever Len touched her, something unexplainable sparked between the both of them - something hot and passionate which burnt away every single bit of common sense and logic that she possessed. His searing gaze as he watched her...it was searching, like he was trying to probe her and find out all her secrets.

''You can't belong to anyone other than me,'' he whispered harshly, his cerulean eyes darkening as he said those words. ''You understand that, don't you, Miku? I swear...'' his hand slid down her pale, delicate cheek as he wound a thick lock of her silken teal hair around his finger, ''if you were to ever pick someone else over me, especially Dell...'' his blue eyes hardened, becoming glacial, ''I will kill them myself.''

''You are overreacting,'' she gasped out, her eyes narrowing slightly at him. ''You can't just threaten to kill whoever it is who manages to capture my attention. I mean, if you did that, I wouldn't have any friends left,'' she pointed out dryly, her breaths still coming out in short spurts as she attempted to suck in enough oxygen to satisfy her greedy body.

''Overreacting or not,'' he said smoothly, apparently unaffected by the lack of air he had experienced while he had been kissing her, ''I will carry out what I had just promised. I don't like being jealous. Seeing you smiling at other men makes me jealous,'' his voice lowered, becoming husky and seductive. ''You really are doing this on purpose, aren't you?''

''I'm not!'' she snapped, though she knew in her heart that she was. Just a little. But she befriended Dell not simply because she wanted to get back at Len about Rui, but because Dell had been so kind and nice to her, right from the very start. Whereas Len Kagamine...

He was still blowing hot and cool with her. Len alternated between passionate and distant. He changed constantly between lustful and cold. He confused her, with his ever-changing moods - sometimes, he seemed as though he couldn't care less about what she was doing. And at other times, such as this..._If you so much as smile at another man, I will make them suffer for it, _he had told her bluntly before.

Was it a good thing, to be the betrothed of Prince Romeo himself? He could be sweet, but the possessiveness which came along with that sweetness...''I swear that I don't feel anything for Rui,'' he whispered, blue eyes staring down at her warily. ''I promised you that I would forget Rin. I...admit that I haven't fully done so, but I won't break my promise and leave you for her. I desire you more than anything else.''

''To what extent could I possibly trust you, though?'' her eyes narrowed suspiciously as she shook her head, gritting her teeth. ''I mean...after all, it's not like I can possibly be sure whether you're lying or not.'' She didn't wish to trust blindly - love was blind, and she wasn't in love. She was just reluctantly attracted to him. She hated him, and he hated her. Their relationship was a classic love-hate kind.

Sometimes, though, what they felt towards each other didn't seem to be only that way. When they talked together at times, just the two of them alone, it felt as though their relationship was more than just superficial, more than just self beneficial...it felt as though she might actually care for him, and that he might care for her as well. And he cared for her deeply. Like...he might actually feel genuine love for her?

''Haven't I already proved to you before that I don't break my promises?'' he murmured, slyness entering his blue gaze once again. ''I've said before that I will kill anyone who dares to hurt you. Did I break that promise?'' he fell silent, waiting for her to come to her own conclusion. She bit on her lip, considering, before she grudgingly shook her head.

_I won't ever let anyone hurt you and get away with it, _he had told her once before, at another time. And he really had done it - he had killed her stepsisters, but had evidently spared her stepmother. Her stepsisters had hurt her, so he had helped her to take revenge upon them, by murdering them in their sleep. Killing them in apparently the most gruesome way possible, given the reports of their bloodstained rooms.

''Fight against the attraction you feel for me,'' his voice was smoothly sensuous. Like melted chocolate, mixed with blood - deadly seduction mixed with danger. ''Fight against it all you wish, Cinderella. We both know that in the end, you will succumb to me. And when you finally admit that you're attracted to me, I'll be waiting for you with open arms. I'll be waiting to hear you say exactly how much you yearn for me.''

With that, he kissed her again, a brief kiss on the cheek. As he withdrew, he watched her, hunger in his eyes. ''Don't do anything which will force me to do something stupid,'' were his parting words to her as he slid off her body, off the bed, sauntering out of the room without any other backwards glance. Miku swallowed as he left the room, quietly closing the door after him - shaking her head, she sat up, feeling giddy.

At the thought of what he had just said, she shivered, placing her hands at her temples. ''Don't do something stupid?'' she muttered, squeezing her eyes shut. ''Would you...really murder just because I smiled at someone else? Is that how much you wish to possess me? How much you desire for me to be only yours?''


	7. Chapter 7

Len was seething. His fiancée - _his _fiancée - was evidently interested in another man. And that other man happened to be his cousin, of all people. How could anyone possibly blame him for getting angry, at this point of time? He was just...all of a sudden, Len stopped in his tracks, in the middle of the long passageway.

Why was he so angry? He didn't understand. Leaning back against the wall, he rubbed at the bridge of his nose with his fingers - fine. So Miku seemed a little too fond of his cousin, Dell. Fine. Len could live with that. The problem was, why did he even care? He didn't love her. Did he? He cared for her, he treated her with much affection because he was responsible for her. She touched something, deep inside him.

Lust. Love. Affection. He couldn't differentiate the three. But he knew he felt at least one, out of the three emotions, for Miku...which was why he didn't dare to risk telling her so. He didn't want to risk her disappearing, fading away from him...in the same way Rin had. What if, the very moment he told Miku how he felt, she...died? Or anything of that sort? He didn't want another fiancée to leave him again.

But was what he felt love, or was it all simply...what it seemed to be? Mere affection? He swallowed, running his fingers through his blond hair - he cared for Miku. He didn't want her to think of anyone other than himself. _But it's entirely possible that I only think that way because she's mine. And I've never liked to share my possessions with other people, _he argued with himself, rather idiotically.

But even he had to admit that his own argument sounded invalid. Miku Hatsune made him forget everything that he wanted to remember. He didn't understand _why _- why did a girl who pushed him away so much...make him yearn so strongly for her touch? The moment he felt her soft skin against his own, he could remember no more. All he could feel was her, her lips, her touch, her sweet voice whispering his name.

But he didn't love her. His fingers clenched into fists - how could he love, when he had sworn that he would love no more? True, something about Miku made him long for things he couldn't put a name to...but that wasn't love, so much as it was possessiveness. Honestly, he didn't have any idea why he felt this way about the slender, teal haired girl - all he knew was, he despised the thought of seeing her with another.

An image of his fiancée, laughing with his own cousin, flashed through his mind. Len gritted his teeth, trying to push the memory away - but it stubbornly chose to remain in his head, just like a pest. Annoying him, and making a general nuisance of itself. An emotion he didn't want to identify flickered through him - something that he was all too familiar with. _Jealousy. _Jealousy was a bitter emotion, twisted and dark.

He didn't like it. He didn't like the way his envy crept up on him, twisting and warping him from the inside. Turning his heart black. But it did, and he couldn't do anything to change that. He sighed - maybe that jealousy was why Miku was interested in Dell. Perhaps because she found his possessiveness too choking. But then, how else was he supposed to feel, about a girl who was meant to be his? And solely his?

Suddenly angry at everything, he whipped around, storming off in the direction opposite to the one he had come from. He needed to vent his anger right now - but what his anger was directed at, precisely, he had no idea. All he knew was that he hated this...he hated that the girl he didn't love was interested in his own cousin. As if Len wasn't good enough for her. In which way was he inferior to Dell, anyway?

Possessiveness. Jealousy. The two emotions were never a good mixture, and he tried to shake the toxic cocktail of negative feelings away from him. _I shouldn't care, _he tried to tell himself._She's nothing to me. Nothing but a toy that I use for occasional amusement. Isn't she? _But then, she was a toy he had promised things to. He had promised her, he would forget Rin...did people make such promises, to their toys?

But it was difficult to forget someone he had loved for so long, so dearly. Cinderella didn't understand how he felt - did she think that forgetting her was as simple as snapping his fingers? If that was the case, he would have forgotten all about his doomed love and moved on, ages ago. The very fact that his Cinderella herself was unable to fully remove the pain...it showed just how much he had once loved Rin.

In a corner of his mind, the corner that was usually calm and rational, he noted that he was being ridiculously unreasonable. He was angry, at what he had no idea - and now, he was blaming his fiancée for that said anger. It all stemmed from seeing her interested in Dell, he knew that. He just wanted to understand why, exactly, he was upset because of that. _Because she doesn't even mean anything to me!_

Irritably, he sighed. He had to calm down, before he did anything too foolish. Or anything that he would end up regretting. His agitated footsteps slowed, and he closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind. If he really didn't care about Miku, then he wouldn't be thinking of her...so he tried his hardest to push the little tealette out of his mind. He tried hard to push the root source of all his problems, all his anger, away.

After a while, though, he had to admit that it wasn't working. Cinderella remained stuck in his mind, as stubborn as she always was, with her flashing green eyes and her pouty, full lips. He was suddenly struck by the fact that, ever since the first moment he had laid eyes upon her, he hadn't been able to forget about her. She always remained in his every thought, lurking around somewhere, distracting him.

Damn it. Why was such a thing even happening to him? Wasn't their relationship supposed to be purely self beneficial? Cinderella had agreed to his proposal in a bid to escape her step family - Len himself had asked to marry her, simply because he had needed to get closer to her. To get her to reveal more about her mysterious past, her unknown story. So why was she always in his mind, refusing to let him go?

That night in Budapest had been a mistake. He shouldn't have allowed it...shouldn't have succumbed to the desire he had felt, then. Not only the desire to touch her, but also the desire to forget everything. Including Rin. He had spent three years remembering her death, torturing himself, because he had known that her death had been a result of his own carelessness. What right did he have to forget about her death?

Yet, he couldn't seem to bring himself to regret what had happened between him and Miku. Definitely, he could regret everything else that he had done...but Budapest itself? That night had been bliss - it was a night that had branded itself onto his very psyche. He couldn't possibly forget it, or force himself to be repentant that he had allowed such a thing to happen. He had wanted Miku then, and she had wanted him.

Their relationship...did they love each other, then? They were more than mere, distant acquaintances, embroiled in a mutual deal to help themselves and each other - if he had only been an acquaintance, he wouldn't have known every single curve of her body, the way he did now. He wouldn't have known exactly what the sweet taste of her lips was like...honey and vanilla, that was what. Poisonously sweet.

He didn't want her to have such an effect on him. She was like an addictive drug, a drug that he simply could not get away from. He couldn't possibly give up his addiction to her, nor could he continue letting himself get affected by his own desire for her - how could he allow the latter, when he didn't even love her? At least, he thought not. His and Miku's relationship was nothing like what he had shared with Rin.

He looked up, realising that as he had been thinking, his feet had brought him to the stables. Slowly, a smile curved his lips - the horse stables. One of his favourite places in the entire palace. The one place which could always soothe him, no matter how bad a mood he was in. It seemed as though instinctively, he had walked here, knowing that he needed peace and quiet. That he needed to think for a while.

Instantly, he walked past the entrance of the stables, deeper inside the compound to search for his loyal companion. He found her easily, grazing peacefully at some oats in the feeder box - Frost raised her head as she sensed his approach, then whinnied in greeting. Len smiled, letting his hand reach out, and the pure white mare nuzzled into his palm, resting her head against his hand. His smiled widened.

Frost had been his riding horse since the king had first adopted him, three years ago. At that time, Len had been depressed and suicidal, and his moods had changed faster than the tides of the sea. Gakupo had given him this horse as a gift, hoping that perhaps training a horse would help in lessening his bad temper. And, to Len's own surprise, it had actually worked - over the weeks, his depression had slowly dissipated.

That was mainly because he could understand how Frost had felt. His horse, the beautiful mare that now stood proud and regal, had once been a pitiful creature. She had been abused by her previous owner, a farmer who had used her to plough the fields because he hadn't bothered to buy an ox, for the backbreaking job. Frost had done the task, but she wasn't fed or groomed properly, and she was emaciated and weak.

Gakupo had been about to pass over Frost, when out buying a horse, but something about the pathetic creature's eyes had captivated him. Despite her pitiful state - hair unwashed and filthy, with some parts falling out in large clumps, as well as a noticeable limp in one of her legs - her eyes were bright and sharp, taking in all of her surroundings. A strong fighting spirit remained, in that broken shell.

Gakupo had been reminded of Len, with his own suicidal depression. So he had bought the horse, and had given it to Len for him to train and care for. At first, Len hadn't bothered - after all, he was still in mourning over Rin's death, and he hadn't even asked for a riding horse, to begin with. But after a while, boredom had made him crawl out of his room, and to begin visiting his new horse, down in the palace stables.

He learnt from his father that his horse was a pure-bred, and of an excellent pedigree - the only reason why she had been sold so cheaply was because of her emaciated state. Honestly, Gakupo had no idea why such a finely bred horse had been treated this way, much less while in the possession of a mere farmer - a horse of this pedigree would normally be found in palaces and castles. Not on a simple farm.

At first, Gakupo had been sceptical about that - how could this pathetic creature possibly be a pedigree racehorse? But then, when he had bought the horse home, the palace grooms had recognised her for her breed, and they had told Gakupo that this particular breed of horse was known for its iron determination, and for its swiftness. They were usually very expensive, he was told, for their breed was rather rare.

She was a racehorse, and despite her crippled state, a proud one at that. Seeing her will to survive, despite how weak she was, made Len feel rather ashamed of his own helplessness. So he had taken over the care of his horse from the palace grooms, personally nursing his own horse back to health. He had named her Frost - not just because of her snowy white coat, but also because of the frosty beauty she owned.

Initially, she had been distrusting and wary of everyone. Including him. She bit, if anyone ever came too close. Still, Len risked it, getting physically close to her so that he could brush her hair and pet her head - and, as a result of that, during that period he had been nursing multiple injuries, especially around his arms. Still, he had persisted, and eventually Frost had become used to his presence around her.

Maybe it was because she had known that he meant her no harm. The bad temper slowly melted away, as she became more and more healthy. In place of hostility, there was an even tempered, well-bred and quiet horse. Frost was a racehorse, and now, in her fine condition, she could run at speeds fast enough to overtake an army. But she was so gentle that even young children could ride her, and come to no harm.

Over time, master and horse had developed a strong, extremely close bond. Frost clearly remembered him because he was the one who had nursed her back to health. Len had been the one who had cared for her, who had showered much needed affection on the poor, neglected creature. And Len remembered her, because Frost had been the horse who had taught him how to live. Who taught him to keep fighting.

''Good girl,'' Len whispered now, petting her gently. The horse huffed, searching for any treats, and regretfully, he showed her that he had none. Good-naturedly, the horse turned away from him, returning to her feeder box to continue chewing on her oats. Len just stood there and watched, for a while - Frost seemed so serene. So at peace. Unlike him, whose emotions were in a turmoil, right then.

Frost seemed to sense his frustration, and she whinnied at him again, trotting back and forth restlessly in her stable. Len grinned, something he only did while around his horse, and he opened her stable door, letting the pure white horse out. Her blue eyes regarded him for a while, then tossing her head she cantered out, stopping before him. He held on to her white mane, then swung himself up, on to her back.

Once he was settled firmly on Frost's back, he felt at ease. One of the only places he had ever felt so relaxed was upon the firm back of his horse - he loved to ride, and he and Frost were close enough that he could ride her without stirrups or a saddle. Though it could get a little uncomfortable after a while, if he was without a saddle. He didn't even need reins - by tapping lightly on her flank, he could direct his horse where to go. They understood each other.

Which was why, when Frost laid back her ears and seemed to recoil, when they reached the front doors of the stables, Len knew that something was very wrong. The last time he had seen his good-natured mare acting this way was...when she had first seen Miku. But Miku and Frost were on good terms now, so she wouldn't react this way to his fiancée. Then...who was there then, at the stable doors?

A petite, black haired girl slowly peeked in, from behind the doors. Len felt himself relax, though his horse remained skittish - it was only Rui. He wondered why Frost reacted this way to the girl, though. Honestly, he hadn't even known why Frost had acted this way around Miku, in the past. ''Are you looking to ride?'' he asked, gesturing back at the stables. ''I could help you saddle up and go. The weather is fine today.''

The girl glanced up, her golden eyes wide. ''I would like to,'' she said softly. ''Except that I have never ridden before. I don't quite know what I'm supposed to do...'' her voice trailed off, and she stared hard at the ground. Len tilted his head - she had never ridden before? Well...he wasn't too surprised, actually. She didn't look like the kind of person who could ride - just like Rin, Rui was far too delicate and small.

''I'll teach you,'' he offered, and Rui looked up again, her small smile widening. She nodded at him, as quiet as ever, and Len steered Frost back, deeper into the stables. ''Come on. I'll help you pick a horse out to saddle. It's a good day for riding today, and there's never a better time to learn how to do so,'' he glanced away, looking for a horse that would be suitable for Rui. Maybe a small horse. Friendly and mild.

Dimly, he realised that he had never done this for his fiancée before. To teach her how to ride. He knew Miku knew how to ride side-saddle, but only while sitting behind him. She didn't know how to ride by herself...but then, she had never wanted to learn before, not like Rui. Had she? _Why am I thinking of her again? It's not like I really care for her. I don't love her - I shouldn't be feeling...guilty about any of this._

_I mean, it's not like I broke any promise to her. I'm not in love with Rui, either. I'm just spending time with her, and teaching her how to ride. I would've done the same for Miku, if she had asked me to..._or maybe not. If he had been upset at Miku, it wasn't likely that he would have done what she had asked him to. He looked back at Frost again - her ears were still laid back, a sign of her hostility.

It was a hostility that was directed at Rui, he could tell. But then, he had to wonder why - his horse was usually good-natured...so why did the petite Rui elicit such a reaction from Frost?

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_**Solitaryloner: **__Okay, so as I guess you all can tell, I don't own a horse. I have ridden before, and I became really sore afterwards. Try riding a horse for five hours straight. It can make you really sore...as in, 'My butt is falling off' sore._

_And also, I don't exactly know what are all the riding terms, and what the feeder thing in stables is called. Feeder boxes? Or is that for a cow? I know what is side-saddle though, and I don't know how anyone could possibly ride that way - it looks hard. Well, Miku has talent, to be able to maintain her balance like that._

_Frost is an albino horse, which is why she is all white, even her mane. That's also why her eyes are red. I know that albino horses are really, really rare. Don't ask me what breed she is - she can be any breed you want, so long as it's of the high bred kind. But she is most definitely not any old common horse._

_23/10/12: Oh, okay. Thanks to juzinha89, I now know there is no such thing as an albino horse. My friend has lied to me. I feel hurt now. So anyway, like she said, Frost will now be a...um...cremello. White coat with blue eyes. Whether or not it's a racehorse...ah well. Even if it's not, then let Frost be an exception then. There are always exceptions._


	8. Chapter 8

''You ride?'' Dell looked rather startled, as he met her gaze. Miku fidgeted, unsure of how she ought to respond. She chose to just shrug.

After Len had pinned her down to their bed, she had gone out of their shared room to look for entertainment. Also, she had not wanted to be reminded of Len in any way, so she went off to search for someone to talk to. Dell was the first person she came across who was free, so she decided to talk to him. She was regretting that now, because despite all their differences, Dell Honne and Len Kagamine resembled...greatly.

Nonetheless, Dell was actually quite an amusing person to speak to, so she did her best to push their resemblance out of her mind. _Dell is not Len. So there is no need for you to feel so aggravated when you speak to Dell. _She didn't know what she was supposed to feel about Len now. He had reminded her that she belonged to him, no matter how much she wished for otherwise...even if she hated his fascination with Rui. Why was he so interested in the girl?

''A little,'' she admitted. ''But I can't ride by myself. I only ever rode on a horse when I was sitting behind Len...I've never tried doing so by myself,'' she glanced down at the floor. ''Nor did I ever try to learn,'' she added, this time a little sullenly. Dell just coughed at her words, then continued staring at her, seeming to be deep in thought. Miku wondered what he was thinking about. His gaze was rather unfocused...

''It makes me wonder what sort of fiancé Len is. Not bothering to teach his own betrothed how to ride a horse. It's a basic skill that all noble women should know,'' Dell finally announced, sounding a little indignant. She stifled a giggle - it wasn't so much Len's fault, this time. She was the one who had never asked him to teach her how to ride a horse. But she had to admit that it was funny, to watch Dell get annoyed at Len.

''Perhaps you could teach me,'' she suggested. She and Dell were in the garden, talking about...things. Len's cousin was a businessman who had taken over his father's trading business, and as a result he travelled to many different places. Just now, Dell had been recounting a fascinating tale about journeying to distant Analand, and that had sparked off a discussion about horses and horse riding in general.

''Perhaps,'' Dell looked faintly uneasy, then he quickly changed the topic. ''You know, I still wonder how you and Len...got engaged to each other,'' he tilted his head, and Miku narrowed her eyes - it was still a sensitive topic. She didn't want to talk about Len. Or anything to do with Len. The idiotic prince had walked away from her earlier, and God knew where he was now. Probably off with his pet horse. Or maybe he was off with Rui. Not like she really cared.

''It was rather complicated,'' she said bluntly. ''I was a servant to the Hatsune family. The new one,'' she added, noticing the look of confusion on Dell's face. ''Yes, I am a Hatsune, but after my father remarried...anyway. I was made to be a servant to my step-family. Then one day, I heard that the prince was hosting a ball. So I sneaked out, the same way Cinderella did, and went to the ball. Len first saw me there.''

''He saw you at the ball the king forced him to host?'' Dell arched an eyebrow at her. ''But then...why did he wish to marry you? Was he not still pining for Rin?'' Miku flinched, and Dell raised his hands in an apologetic gesture. ''I'm sorry. I spoke out of hand. Please continue,'' he waited for her to speak. Miku took a deep breath, feeling a little reluctant about talking about her engagement. But she went on.

''There were a couple of rumours about me,'' she said slowly. ''One of them being that I was supposed to be dead. Len was determined to find out whether I was...really who I claimed to be. So he proposed to me. That way, I would have to move to his palace, where he would be able to keep a closer eye on me, and find out what he wanted to. He didn't love me when he proposed,'' Miku looked up, meeting Dell's gaze. ''He never did love me. And he still doesn't.''

''So...are you really who you claim you are?'' Dell's voice was filled with curiosity. Miku smiled a little, her green eyes drifting away to gaze at something in the distance. Not that he knew what she was looking at. He couldn't help disbelieving what she had said earlier - Dell knew his cousin fairly well. And he knew that Len would not have lashed out at him about Miku if he didn't care a little about the girl.

They were sitting on a bench together. Despite Dell only knowing the girl for a short while, he felt strangely...at ease around her. Miku, or Cinderella, as she still preferred to be known as, was someone he found he could rather relate to. He knew what it was like to have to fight to survive. For him, it was like that too. His family fought in a world of bloody politics and trade. Dell tried his best to stay out of it all.

Unlike Len, Dell was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth. His father had built up his trading business from scratch. Before that, his family was poor, and Dell knew how the poor lived. He had once been just like Miku, trying to live in a world where everyone simply despised and looked down upon him. _Related to a noble, yet with no money of their own. They're all just no more than miserable little rats._

Was it his fault that he hadn't been born rich? That was why Dell was so cautious, so prudent - he didn't want to lose his wealth and fall back into the black hole that was poverty. It had been immensely difficult to claw his way out of that dreaded pit, and he hoped he wouldn't have to stumble into it again. Miku understood that feeling of being looked down upon. To be treated like she was nothing more than scum.

Len didn't ever understand how Dell felt, for the blond prince had never once been treated disdainfully, not in his whole life. Well, except by his birth father. But other than that, no one dared to mock the prince, and he didn't know how it felt to always be ridiculed. In a world where money ruled, where wealth and privilege were what offered the most power, it was a struggle for the aristocrats to triumph and survive. To get closer to the royal family...

''If I wasn't who I claimed to be, do you think I would still be sitting here, talking to you?'' she asked, her voice playful. He didn't miss the deep sadness in her voice though, and he wondered why there was such an emotion behind her words. Before he could ask her any other questions, Miku rose from the bench, brushing her dress down. ''I would like to look for my betrothed now,'' her voice was subdued. ''Do you care to search for him with me, Dell?''

''I don't have anything better to do anyway. Not until my audience with the king later, this afternoon,'' Dell rose from the bench as well. He had managed to convince the king to listen to some of his trade plans, and he was hoping that he could ask the king to sponsor some of his business expenses. It was what all traders yearned for - an audience with the king. But for some reason, Dell wasn't looking forward to this. He didn't actually...like trading much.

It was his father's business, and Dell himself was complimented for his sharp sense of entrepreneurship. But those two were the only reasons why Dell was willing to take over the family's trading business. Otherwise, Dell would not have bothered himself with such a thing. He disliked having to interact with people unless circumstances deemed it necessary, and trading definitely required him to...talk to others.

The only people Dell had never really minded speaking to were his friends and family. He did not treat his acquaintances the same way. But now, it appeared to him that Miku was...someone he could relate to, as well. It was rather strange, but he never had expected that another noble would be stuck in situations that were similar to what he himself had once endured. Not that he had told her anything about his past yet. She never asked, anyway.

Miku smiled, looking a little relieved. ''Thank you, Dell,'' she inclined her head. ''You are a very kind man. Much nicer than Len is, anyway,'' she added, her voice dry. Before Dell was forced to think up of some kind of reply, Miku swept away from him, walking back inside the palace. Shrugging, Dell followed her, not quite wanting to be left in the palace gardens by himself. The place was huge, and he risked getting lost.

''Where do you think he would be?'' he asked, hurrying a little so that he walked next to Miku, instead. ''You are his fiancée. You ought to have the best idea of where he would go to spend his time...'' he noticed Miku stiffen, the teal haired beauty turning around to stare at him. He had to resist the sudden urge to fidget, underneath her piercing gaze - why did he receive the feeling that he had just said something very wrong?

''I hate him,'' Miku said, quite bluntly. Dell flinched at the tone of voice she used - he had never heard someone using such a...flat tone. ''He could rot in Hell for all I care. I don't have the faintest idea where he could be now. Possibly with his horse, since he loves his pet,'' her green eyes narrowed at him. ''Or, like I suspect, he's with Rui. Since Rui reminds him a great deal of Rin, after all,'' she said bitterly.

_She sounds jealous. _But wisely, Dell decided not to mention that little fact. ''Well, I suppose you're right. Maybe we should check the horse stables first...'' he paused. ''But if you really do hate him so much, why do you want to find him now?'' he tilted his head, regarding the teal haired aristocrat quizzically. Miku placed her slender hands on her hips, her steady stare becoming something more like...a glare.

''Because, at the end of it all, he's my fiancé. I don't want to be mocked by other noblewomen because I allowed my betrothed to stray. At the very least, I ought to keep tabs on him,'' she stated, her voice so matter-of-fact that it made Dell feel a little idiotic. That made sense. But still, he was unconvinced - _Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned. And Miku certainly seems to be angry, at the moment. At least, to me..._

''If I find him with Rui, I'm going to lock him out of his room for the next month,'' he thought he heard her mutter. Startled, he glanced at the tealette - she was still standing next to him, her fingers fisting the fabric of her dress. It seemed that, under the facade of calm she showed, she was actually feeling rather...upset. _So doesn't that mean that her lack of feelings for Len...it's all just a lie? _Dell swallowed, uncertain.

He didn't exactly know why a little flicker of disappointment seemed to pass through him, at the thought of that. He tried to push the hint of sadness away. ''Should we go and look for Len now?'' he offered. Miku's forest green eyes darkened a little, but then she nodded and set off, Dell hurrying to keep up with her. Miku glided away from the gardens, seemingly without any idea where she was going.

''Where are we heading to, anyway?'' he asked the question upon realising that they were wandering around aimlessly, as if they didn't have any place in mind to head for. Miku paused, then turned around to regard Dell silently. It wasn't a glare, but nevertheless he had to resist the urge to back away. As always, the slender, petite tealette was frighteningly intimidating. Staring into her eyes made him feel like she could study his very soul.

''The horse stables,'' Miku answered, her voice placid. ''And if he's really there with Rui,'' came the low mutter, ''may God help him then.''

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_**Solitaryloner: **Short chapter, yes, I know. The next one will be longer to make up for it. At least, I'll try to make it a little longer. The point of this chapter is to introduce Dell a little...since not much is known about him._


	9. Chapter 9

''You can't let your horse graze on the grass,'' Len resisted the urge to snap impatiently at Rui, knowing that she was only a beginner at this.

Nevertheless, the black haired girl looked rather unsettled. ''But the horse is too strong for me to -'' her words were cut off as she slumped forward, her horse straining at the reins as it tried to reach the grass. Len sighed, reaching up to the reins she was holding - with one sharp tug, he pulled the horse away from the grass. The animal snorted and whinnied at him, but didn't try to graze anymore. Rui blinked.

''You're very strong,'' was all she said, seeming impressed. Len shrugged it off, reaching out to pet the horse's head. This mare was one of the more...gentle horses available, in their stables. Her name was Grace. Unlike Frost, Grace was pure black, with a single white foot. He thought that Grace matched Rui, since both of them had black hair. ''Why can't I allow the horse to eat the grass?'' Rui asked, curious. He paused.

''You need to show it who's dominant. You, not the horse. You're the rider, the master, and if you keep allowing your horse to graze, it won't listen to you anymore,'' he explained. ''Instead of walking when you ride it, it'll just eat, since it knows that you won't stop it. Horses are not stupid creatures...they're a lot like us, in a way,'' he smiled a little. ''After all, if we lose respect for someone, we won't obey them, right?''

Rui nodded slowly, and Len wondered whether she really understood what he was saying. ''You know,'' the petite girl started, ''I've always been very fascinated by horses...'' she reached out, stroking Grace's head lightly. The horse snorted, and Rui giggled. ''While I was in Budapest, I always saw noblemen out on their horses. And horses...they were such beautiful animals. I've long wished that I could ride one, someday.''

''Well, now you are,'' Len smiled again, a more genuine smile this time. He understood how the girl felt, even though he had never been poor, unlike her. To him, horses were wonderful creatures. They could understand him, and he understood them as well. The bond between a horse and its master was extremely strong - he just couldn't imagine how his life would be like now, if it weren't for Frost. His companion.

Idly, he wondered what was wrong with the white mare. He wasn't riding Frost now - since he was teaching Rui how to ride, it would be easier for him to walk next to her, guiding her along. But he doubted that, even if he had wished to ride Frost, his horse would allow him to take her out. Not if Rui was anywhere near the mare. Frost, for some reason, couldn't seem to stand Rui. Not that he had any idea why.

Whenever Rui went anywhere near Frost, the mare jumped and skittered away from her, laying her ears back as she glared at the girl. His patient, gentle horse became wild and hostile while in Rui's presence, and Len didn't want to risk Rui getting injured by Frost. So he chose not to bring his mare out, though it had been in his original intentions to go riding. Len let out a sigh, shaking his head at the thought.

It didn't matter. At least he was teaching Rui how to ride now. He still got to be around his horses, and he was doing something helpful. ''Do you want to ride anymore?'' he asked, looking up at the raven haired girl. She glanced back down at him - even though she was a good deal shorter than him, she towered over him now, since she was on a horse. They had been trotting in the fields for...quite a while, now.

Frankly, Len was getting tired. They had went a great distance, and it was rather exhausting while he was on foot. He had never before taught anyone else how to ride, and he didn't expect it to be so...energy draining. ''No, we're all tired. I think it would be prudent if we make our way back to the palace now,'' came the quiet reply. Len hid a sigh of relief, glad to be on the way home. He wanted to rest a little.

Rui was very sensible, he had to admit. Now, if this was Miku, on the other hand, the tealette would have demanded that they go further, just so that she could see him suffer...a faint scowl flickered across his face. _Cinderella. Why am I thinking of her again? I came all the way out here so I wouldn't have to focus on her. Still, she's occupying my every thought. Why won't she leave me alone, even within my head?_

''Do you want to sit with me?'' Rui suddenly spoke again, startling him. Len glanced up at her - there was a faint blush on her face as she stared down at the horse, avoiding his gaze. ''It must be...tiring, to guide me for such a long time. Surely Grace can take the both of us?'' she gestured at the horse, which had gone back to grazing at the grass. Len blinked, thinking about the offer - he was rather tempted, actually.

_Cinderella...she won't like that..._his fingers tightened around the bridle. He had been holding on to the bridle all this time, as he guided Rui through the palace grounds. The whole area was rather extensive, and without a guide, it was easy to wander out of the palace grounds into the wilderness outside. There were parts of the grounds that were not fenced in, though those places were few and hard to find. Still, Len didn't want to take any chances.

''No, I think it would be better if I did not,'' he nodded to show his appreciation, nevertheless. ''It was very kind of you to offer such a thing, and I thank you for that,'' he thought he saw something flicker across Rui's face at his words - almost like disappointment, in fact - but then her face brightened, and she nodded back at him. ''Shall we go now?'' Len offered, tugging gently at the bridle. Grace raised her head.

And so, in silence, they continued picking their way through the tall grass, heading back to the palace. This was all still royal land, but it was some distance away from the actual palace itself. It was good for riding, especially since these fields were accessible from the stables, but the remoteness of the area made things rather...inconvenient, at times. Sometimes, the horses managed to escape out to the fields.

Whenever a horse managed to run away from the stables, it was difficult to retrieve the animal...practically impossible. Somehow, the horse would always find its way here, and get out of the fields through one of the unfenced areas. The only reason why they still had yet to seal up these unfenced parts was because they didn't know, precisely, where these sections were. The fields were simply too vast, and searching for those areas wasted manpower.

He and Rui didn't talk much, as they went back to the palace. At most, they discussed their old lives back in Budapest, and made small talk. Rui was a good listener, and she paid a great deal of attention to everything he said. He didn't know whether he was flattered or not by that. She herself didn't talk much - she left it to Len to continue the conversation, most of the time. Not that he minded, not exactly, but still...

_Cinderella would have gotten into a pointless argument with me, instead of docilely sitting there and listening to whatever I say. _And for some reason, he preferred the idea of that. Of exchanging fierce words and barbed insults. He wasn't used to such...peace and quiet. Maybe it was because he had spent too much time with his betrothed, before. Or perhaps he just wasn't someone who particularly enjoyed calm.

_Maybe this is why I find myself so attracted to Cinderella? Because she provides me a spark, a thrill I can't get from anyone else? No one but her ever dares to disagree with me..._he couldn't stop himself from thinking of the tealette. From comparing her, almost unconsciously, with Rui. The two girls were so different...just like polar opposites. Like the difference between Night and Day. And he knew which he preferred.

He knew, then and there, what he had to do. After spending some time outside, with a horse and with Rui, he had calmed down enough to think rationally. _I need to speak to her. Maybe I was too possessive, too controlling, earlier. I wasn't thinking when I snapped at her just now. I just...didn't like seeing her with Dell. It's not fair. She's my fiancée - why should she be interested in my cousin? _He gritted his teeth.

His fingers tightened around the bridle once more. Slowly, he took in a deep breath, trying to suppress the feelings of dissatisfaction that came with the thought of his betrothed, smiling and laughing with another man. In fact, those feelings...they were more than dissatisfaction. There was anger, too. And, even if he didn't want to admit it, there was sadness behind his every thought. Sadness so deep that he almost didn't feel it. _Why should I feel sad, anyway?_

He didn't love her. He shouldn't mind so much. They were only in a self-beneficial relationship here, and if it hadn't been for her need to escape her step-family, and his desire to find out the truth, they wouldn't have agreed to marry each other. ''Is there something wrong, Len?'' Rui's voice pierced through the mess in his head, and instantly he looked at her, his eyes widening in surprise. Rui stared back at him.

He was, to be honest, still rather surprised whenever Rui opened her mouth to speak to him, of her own accord. It was just that...she was such a quiet, thoughtful girl. She gave him the impression that she was shy and mild, and that she was unused to speaking to strangers. Especially strangers of the aristocratic class. She had opened up a little since this morning, but she still didn't speak much to him. To anyone.

''No, there's nothing wrong -'' he tried to smile, but failed miserably in the attempt. He thought that his smile looked more like a grimace, and Rui's golden eyes widened, filled with curiosity. She parted her lips, clearly about to ask him a question, but then Len whipped around, his gaze narrowing as he saw something in the distance. _That can't be what I think it is. Can it? _Without thinking, he stormed towards it.

As he approached the foreign object, he realised what it was - and he saw red at the very sight. _His _Cinderella, sitting behind his _cousin, _riding Dell's chestnut stallion - which was named Break - laughing as she wrapped her arms around Dell's waist. And Dell was allowing her to do just that, laughing along with her. The two of them looked like a merry little couple, and frankly, Len didn't appreciate the sight of that.

As he slowly understood what the situation here was, a flurry of thoughts ran through his mind, ranging from_''Why is she allowing Dell to touch her? And why is Dell touching her? She's mine!'' _to _''Is she safe on that thing? It's a stallion. She doesn't know how to ride yet. What if she gets hurt?'' _to _''I'm going to kill Dell.'' _Furious, Len made his way over to the happy couple, and as Miku noticed him approach, she quietened.

Dell turned back to face the front, at her abrupt silence. And, at the sight of Len, glowering at him, the silver haired boy paled, his red eyes widening slightly. ''It's not what you think it is,'' Len's cousin instantly tried to explain. But Len wasn't listening, his arms folded as he glared at Miku's hands, wrapped tightly around Dell's waist. He didn't say anything, just waiting. Sulkily, Miku unwound her arms, folding them across her chest. She looked just like Len.

Len reached out for Miku, and she hesitated. His fiancée exchanged a pointed, careful look with his cousin, making Len growl a little, impatient. Finally, she took hold of his proffered arm, getting gracefully down from the stallion. Len couldn't resist the urge to check her for signs of injury, still worried that the stallion might have injured her in some way. She seemed perfectly fine - for now - and he sighed, relieved.

Ignoring Dell, he tilted her chin up, ignoring the way she struggled and protested. His eyes met hers - her green eyes trapped him as always, rendering him incapable of looking away. He could only continue staring, transfixed by her lovely eyes. Those eyes were now sparking with fury and defiance, and he adored them all the more for it. ''You belong to me, remember?'' he hissed. ''Not to anyone else. Not to him.''

''I never agreed to that,'' she snapped, still trying to jerk away from him. He didn't let her go, but she didn't stop trying. ''Let go of me!'' she resorted to verbal struggling, after her physical attempts appeared to get her nowhere. Dell sat up on Break, obviously concerned about the situation at hand, but Len narrowed his eyes at his cousin, and Dell glanced away. He knew better than to interfere, with Len in this kind of mood. Interfering would make things worse.

''Even if you don't agree, you're my fiancée. Your body, your heart, your soul, everything..._you _are mine. And I will not share you with anyone,'' before she could come up with some kind of retort, Len leant forward, pressing his lips to hers. Right in front of Dell. Miku froze, shocked by what Len was doing - his lips were warm and familiar, and she couldn't stop herself from melting at his touch. For the briefest second...

But he was rough with her. Angry, almost. His arm wrapped around her waist, forcing her close to him. His other hand pressed the back of her head towards himself, preventing her from breaking away. His kiss was bruising, chafing her lips, and she didn't like it. It wasn't a tender, loving kiss - it was brutal and angry, more of a claim of possession than an action borne of affection. And she hated this kiss.

She shoved him away from her, her lips feeling rather bruised - and, without hesitating, she reached out to slap his face. Len's cerulean eyes widened - those gorgeous eyes she could never quite look away from - as his hand snapped up to his cheek. To where she had slapped him. ''You...you slapped me,'' he said haltingly, as if he couldn't quite believe what she had just done. ''For the second time,'' he added slowly.

Again, she had slapped him for kissing her without permission. She wiped her mouth using the back of her hand, the action angry and rough. She could feel hotness prickling at her eyes, and she hated that too - Miku rarely ever let herself cry, and she didn't want to do so before him. He wasn't worth her tears. Was he? Why did she feel like she was going to cry, anyway? ''And I'll do it again if I have to.''

He parted his lips, the shock in his blue eyes fading, becoming something more like anger - but before he could say anything, she cut across him, tossing her teal hair behind her shoulders. ''If you're unhappy,'' she said scathingly, ''then go and rant to Rui, over there. She'll gladly provide you a listening ear, and you two can go and snuggle up on a tree or something, while you're at it,'' she pointed jerkily at said girl.

Rui was watching the whole scene unfold, her lips parted slightly in shock. As Miku pointed at her, the black haired girl jerked up, looking a little lost. The horse she was sitting upon was grazing quietly at the grass, looking rather idyllic - so peaceful and calm that it didn't match the violent scene happening right before them. Len glanced back at Rui, then rolled his eyes in exasperation. ''Miku, there's nothing going -''

''I don't want to listen to your love life!'' she said loudly, the tears really threatening to leak out, by now. _Why am I so upset about this? Len is nothing to me. Absolutely nothing. There's no love lost between us. We're simply making use of each other to satisfy our own goals..._before he could press on about his unwanted point, she turned and ran away, back to the palace. Away from Rui, away from Dell, away from Len...

Len gaped after her for a while, still stunned by that slap and everything Miku had just said. _She...she just ran away from me..._he shook his head, not knowing what to do anymore. Then suddenly, he felt someone hit him on the back of his head - scowling, he whipped around. Dell was scowling right back, his crimson eyes filled with exasperation. ''You made her cry, Len! Didn't you see that? Do something about it!''

_Do something? Cinderella...Miku...she's crying? _He had never seen her cry before, not really. He had seen her upset and frightened, but genuine tears...no. Not really. Only once, ever. _She's crying. _''Bring Rui back to the palace!'' he told Dell, his mind racing - then, he set off after his fiancée. She wasn't very far ahead, since her long skirts prevented her from running too quickly. Before long, he had caught up to her.

Right in front of his very eyes, Miku tripped on her long skirts, falling to the ground with a soft cry. He immediately darted over to her, trying to help her up - something in his chest twisted when he saw the wetness glistening on her cheeks - but she pushed him away. Instead, she staggered up by herself, facing away from him. ''Leave me alone,'' she breathed out, her voice hitching. Then she continued running away.

_She's bleeding..._he wanted to continue chasing her, he really did, but he knew that she would never allow him near her. Not now. Even if he didn't really care about her that way, he knew her well enough to know her temperament. So he stayed behind, watching her as she got further and further away. _She wants to be left alone. If I go after her now, she'll just scream at me to go away. She needs to calm down..._

_She's bleeding. _The thought ran through his mind again, and he gritted his teeth, his hand going to his chest. His chest hurt at the thought of that. Of her being injured. But he didn't know why...why he felt this way, at the sight of her tears. At the sight of her blood. It was almost the same feeling as when he had killed that man, the man who had almost raped her. But this feeling was more intense, and he closed his eyes, shaking his head to clear his mind.

_I don't understand why I feel this way. I don't know why she's so angry. But I'm sure of one thing - she's going to be the death of me._


	10. Chapter 10

So maybe it would have been wiser if he had gone after Cinderella, instead of just standing there like some sort of idiot. Romeo sighed.

''Where is she?'' he muttered, staring up at the ceiling. He was lying flat on his bed, his head resting on a pillow...on Cinderella's pillow, to be more accurate. He could smell her sweet scent clinging on to the bedsheets, and no matter how much he wanted to deny it...he had to admit that he wanted her back. But even so, he wasn't going to reveal that particular, strange longing to anyone. No one other than himself...

He couldn't find his fiancée anywhere. It was like she had disappeared from the very face of this planet. Or from the palace, at least. He would have thought that Cinderella had fled from the palace, were it not for the fact that he knew she had nowhere else to go. He sighed, drumming his fingers against the mattress. His bed was so empty without her, he realised.

He didn't like it. He wanted her. She was warm. He liked the warmth. Without her, his bed was cold...he was cold. He needed his fiancée to warm the bed..._that's right. That's all I need her for, really. _He pushed himself up from the mattress, his fingers wrapping around one of the bedposts. He was going to find Cinderella.

Then, when he found her, he would find a way to chain her to him. Or to the bed. Maybe with the usage of actual handcuffs. He did have a pair of handcuffs in his drawer...but he lost the keys. Wouldn't that be better, though? Then she would never be able to leave his bed, since he didn't have the keys. _I like the sound of that._

Or maybe he could just use a chain. He had a chain too. And rope, lots of rope. Where did he put all of it? He couldn't remember. Maybe he left them in the stables. Len tilted his head, wondering where his betrothed could be. Was there anywhere in the palace he had yet to look around in? He frowned, trying to think...

Well, there was always the servants' quarters. He hadn't checked there yet, since he didn't recall Cinderella ever spending much time with the servants...but he could always check to see if she was there. He guessed she was hiding from him. Or trying to. That would make sense, given the way she had slapped him earlier.

_She slapped me...I still don't know why. _Len's fingers drifted slowly to his cheek. His face no longer stung, but the memory of the slap hurt. In fact, the blow itself hadn't really hurt him - it was mainly his pride which had been wounded. Absently, he rubbed his palm against his cheek. She was still beautiful in his eyes, even though the girl dared to slap him. She was...lovely.

When she was angry, her eyes flashed, and her cheeks flushed. It made her look exquisite. He hated it when she cried, though. And he knew he had made her cry, though he didn't quite understand what he had done to make her feel upset. After all, he didn't retaliate when she hit him, though typically he would have returned the blow. What was _she _so unhappy about?

Was she still jealous that he was spending time with Rui? But Rui was no more than a guest. It wasn't like he was doing anything unspeakable with her. He was just teaching her how to ride a horse. He really didn't understand Miku, some times. Len never slapped her just because she was with Dell - he had never done anything to intentionally hurt her, before. She was his...

His pet. His doll. His fiancée. What was she to him, truly? Something which, up till this point, still confused him. He just wanted to understand himself, his mixed feelings about this matter. _Why do I care so much about her? She's just a girl...she's replaceable, isn't she? _But he knew that, in reality, she was far from replaceable.

No one could ever take her place. He didn't think...he felt that even Rin couldn't be Miku's substitute. No matter how much he loved his dead beloved, she wasn't the same as the teal haired beauty who warmed his bed. They were too different. Rin was too sweet to be like her. She was too argumentative to be like Rin.

_She's nothing like Rin. That's why I don't know why I feel this way. Is she of more or less importance to me, compared to Rin? _He sighed. He was just confusing himself, he knew. If only there was a way to stop thinking. There was a way, he realised. He could just drop dead.

But if he died, he wouldn't be able to see Miku again...he wouldn't like that. Slowly, he placed his hand over his chest, closing his eyes at the very thought. He couldn't stand the implications of his death. _I won't be able to keep an eye on her anymore. She would be free to fall for my cousin..._he gritted his teeth. No. He wouldn't allow such a thing, not ever. No way in Hell.

Even if he died, he would return to haunt her. _I'm the only one you're allowed to think about. You're the only one I'll allow to touch me. And I'm the only one allowed to touch you. _He was going to find her, instead of just moping in bed the way he had been the whole afternoon. It was night-time now. He needed her with him.

He needed her to warm his bed, and he would find her and take her back. _You're my fiancée. Don't think that I'll ever let you escape me._

:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:

''Cinderella, he hasn't appeared in the servants' quarters the whole day, I'm sure you can come out now,'' Gumi rapped on the cupboard door.

There was no response, and Gumi sighed. The girl was still sulking, it seemed. She wondered why the tealette was so unhappy. The girl had suddenly shown up outside Gumi's room, and she told the startled servant-girl that she wanted to hide from her fiancé for a while.

Miku didn't explain why, but Gumi guessed from the black anger on her face - and were those tear tracks on her cheeks? - that she and the prince had a...disagreement of some sort. Now, the tealette insisted on hiding in Gumi's closet, just in case the prince came to the servants' quarters and started looking in all the rooms.

Which, in Gumi's personal opinion, made no sense whatsoever. But she didn't want to argue with the prince's betrothed. Cinderella was a headstrong and ridiculously stubborn girl, and it was easier to just give in to her demands. But she thought that if Prince Len really did bother to come to the servants' rooms, he would end up searching each room anyway, which would make Cinderella's hiding attempt pointless.

Surely the prince wouldn't come to check the rooms, not at this late hour. It was already night-time, and he had yet to set foot in this wing of the palace. Cinderella had been hiding in the closet since this afternoon. Wasn't she feeling cramped, by now? Gumi did not have what one could call a...very spacious closet.

The petite princess - she would be considered a princess now, since she was the prince's fiancée - didn't even come out of that blasted closet for her afternoon tea. Or dinner. Frankly, Gumi was getting worried. She considered the princess to be a friend of sorts, and she worried for her. Surely Miku was getting hungry by now. Why was she staying so quiet in there, anyway?

She heard a door slam. She frowned. There it was again. There was quite a commotion going on in the servants' quarters tonight, for some reason. She didn't understand why this was happening. It hadn't gotten bothersome enough for her to leave her room and yell, but if things kept up at this rate...Gumi would be very annoyed. No one wanted Gumi to be annoyed.

There was a reason why she was the head of all the servants here, after all. Well, other than the fact that her twin brother, Gumo, was the Prince's personal butler..._not that Gumo really does his job all that much, since Prince Len prefers to do everything by himself. I think Gumo just sleeps in his room, most of the time. _Suddenly, there was a loud crashing sound.

Gumi jumped, startled out of her thoughts. It seemed to come from next door. Which meant it was coming from Gumo's room. Irritated, Gumi rose from her bed - she had just sat down, and now she had to get up again. What was her twin brother doing now? He wasn't like this, usually. In fact, most of the time he was fast asleep. Why was he being so noisy tonight?

She strode over to her door, flinging it open - and right there, standing before her, his hand poised to knock, was Len Kagamine. Gumi blinked, stunned. _What is he doing here? I thought he wouldn't show up here, now that it's night-time...did I speak too soon? _The prince blinked, his cerulean eyes widening.

''Am I...intruding upon something?'' he asked, his voice filled with thinly-veiled amusement. Gumi blinked, looking past him to the corridor outside - it seemed to be perfectly fine. Quiet and peaceful, as it usually was at night. But she was so sure that something had been going on outside, just now. What with all the doors slamming and whatnot. And the crash she had heard, from Gumo's room? What was that?

''No, your Highness. Of course not,'' she replied, craning her neck to stare at her brother's door. It seemed fine...but something had fallen in there, she was certain. Something big. She was going to take a look, later. ''Is there something you need, Prince Len?'' she added after a while, when the prince didn't say anything else.

The prince tilted his head. ''You wouldn't mind if I searched your room, would you?'' he smiled. Gumi blinked at him, startled by the unexpected request. His smile widened a little. ''There's a runaway bride I have to find,'' suddenly, his light tone changed, from amused to dark. ''And I won't rest until I finally get my hands on her.''

_I wonder if he meant that in a literal sense. _The inappropriate thought floated through her mind, and she struggled to keep a straight face. She knew she couldn't deny the prince, so she just curtseyed, stepping aside to allow him in. _I'm sorry, Miku. I did try to get you out of that closet just now. _She watched as the prince looked around the room, his eyes narrowing.

As expected, he walked over to the closet. It was the only hiding place available in the whole room, after all. Gumi wondered if she would be punished for hiding the princess...in the end, she decided not to worry about it. At the very most, she would be told off about helping the princess. For some reason, when it came to his bride, the prince was extremely...lenient...?

She wasn't sure if that was the right word to use. Generally, the prince punished those who displeased him harshly. But she recalled that, when she and Miku had followed him all the way to Budapest, he didn't punish either of them. He didn't even scold Gumi for aiding the princess. Though usually, he would have fired her for doing such a thing. Gumi wondered...

_Prince Len must have quite a soft spot for his fiancée, if he doesn't do anything to punish those who help her with her plans. _Gumi smiled, amused by it all. She was wondering still about all the commotion outside, and she wasn't really watching the prince now. Or the closet. Idly, she wondered if Miku had managed to escape it earlier, without her noticing.

Perhaps she had? Maybe that was why the princess was so silent in the closet. Because no one was inside it. Gumi couldn't be certain, given that she hadn't opened the closet since Miku hid herself inside it. She wasn't sure whether she was on Len or Miku's side, in this case. It was getting a little inconvenient, with Miku hiding in her closet, but it was ridiculously amusing to watch the prince getting jealous.

_No, I shouldn't be thinking this way. Prince Len is part of the royal family, so I should be on his side...but Miku is going to marry into the royal family, and she's my friend..._at that moment, the prince flung the doors of the closet open. Curious despite herself, Gumi edged behind the prince, staring into the closet - there was the princess, curled up on the closet floor. And she was...Gumi stared. The girl was fast asleep.

_No wonder she didn't respond when I called her. But how could anyone sleep in that tiny, cramped space? _Gumi watched intently as the prince sighed, shaking his head, leaning down to scoop his fiancée into his arms. ''Hide and Seek. You hid. I sought. You lost,'' he whispered, his words so soft that Gumi almost couldn't hear him. The prince closed his eyes, kissing Miku lightly on her forehead. She remained asleep.

_That's sweet. Luckily for him, she's sleeping. Things wouldn't be so peaceful if she wasn't unconscious. _At that moment, he turned to face Gumi, the princess secure in his arms. His blue eyes were narrowed at her. Gumi swallowed, a little nervous. _He's going to give me a long, long lecture about how irresponsible I am._

''How could you help her hide from me?'' the prince started, his grip on Miku tightening. ''You should have told me that she was hiding in your room! I spent the whole day searching for her, and all along she was hiding in your closet! I'm disappointed, Gumi - I expected the Head of the servants to be more responsible. Especially since you're my father's personal aide.''

''I apologise, your Highness. But she asked me to keep her presence in the servants' quarters a secret, and I was simply doing as she wished,'' Gumi curtseyed, keeping her gaze fixed to the floor. She had to do her best to convey shame, or else the prince would continue nagging at her. She recalled the lecture she received, the time she broke a bottle of his favourite wine.

Prince Len could be remarkably long-winded. It was quite a surprise, given his temperamental and impatient nature - and also given the fact that he was sometimes a suicidal drunk - but whenever he was scolding one of their servants, he had a tendency to beat around the bush. He could stand here, lecturing her on how very irresponsible she was, for the next half an hour. Gumi did not want that to happen to her.

To her surprise, the prince just sighed. ''Just don't do that again,'' was all he said, one of his hands reaching up to brush the tealette's silky hair away from her eyes. It was a surprisingly affectionate gesture - something Gumi did not expect the cold, distant prince to do. Then again, she knew that he actually cared for his bride. Miku was very special to him, she could tell.

She was the only girl Gumi had seen who was capable of touching the prince's heart. ''You love her, don't you?'' she asked, blurting the question in her mind out. At once, she clamped her hand over her mouth, shocked by her own daring - it was not in her place to ask him something so personal. He stiffened at the question, his gaze flicking up to meet hers. His eyes were cold.

''I don't love,'' was all he said. ''I said...I would never love again. I've only ever loved one girl, and...'' he looked down at Miku, frowning just a little, ''This girl is not her,'' he said simply.

With those words, he turned, walking away from Gumi's room. Right before he stepped out, he turned back again, sudden humour dancing in his blue eyes. ''Incidentally, you might want to help your twin brother to clean up his room. I was looking in the rooms of all the servants for Miku, and I might have gone a little overboard with my...search,'' he shrugged, smiling at her angelically, before he finally left the room.

Gumi blinked, registering his words. _How bad could it be...? _She hesitantly walked over to her brother's room, which was right next to her own. She reached a hand out, rapping smartly on the wooden surface - and, to her horror, the whole door fell inwards, onto the floor. She looked up into her brother's room, bile rising in her throat. This...this was...what was this?

The place was a mess, to put it simply. The cupboard door was hanging on its hinges, there were books scattered all over the floor, and her green haired brother himself was nowhere to be seen. Gumi felt her eyelids twitching. She and her brother, Gumo Nakajima, were known to have borderline obsessions with tidiness and orderliness. This mess was so...distasteful!

''Gumo!'' she yelled, stepping carefully into the room - and suddenly, from out of nowhere, the butler popped up, clinging fearfully onto her. Gumi spluttered, trying to get her twin off her. ''Gumo, you idiot, what did you do to your room?'' she tried to bat him off. He was hiding his face in her back, his hands gripping her arms tightly. _My brother is such a coward._

''It wasn't me!'' he wailed. ''It was the prince, he just waltzed in here and started tearing the whole place up, he said he was searching for his bride and she was gone and everything and I don't understand why he thought she would be hiding in my room!'' Gumo spun her around, grabbing her by the shoulders and shaking her hard. Gumi blinked, feeling a little giddy.

''Stop...stop shaking me,'' she pushed him away, letting her hand flutter up to her forehead. Her green eyes met the chaos that was now Gumo's room, and she wrinkled her nose in distaste. Neither of the Nakajima twins could stand messiness of any kind. And the prince knew it. Was this supposed to be her punishment for aiding Miku? He probably knew from the start that his fiancée was hiding in Gumi's room...

''I'm going to have to tidy this up,'' Gumo was now grumbling. He was an exact replica of her, down to the light green hair and deep emerald eyes. But where she was wearing a servant's dress, he was wearing a butler's uniform. They were identical twins, after all. ''And now that you've seen the hideous horror that is my room, you can't just leave me in the lurch!'' he added. Gumi frowned at him, but knew he was right.

How could she return to her room when she knew that, right next door, there was this giant monstrosity? She was going to have to help her brother clean up. Only then would she rest easy. This was all the prince's fault. He was trying to make life difficult for her and Gumo! He _knew _how they felt about messiness and untidiness - the whole palace knew about their obsession!

''I hope Miku makes you suffer for this, Len,'' she grumbled. At least she could take solace in the fact that Miku was not going to be happy when she awoke. Len would suffer for carrying her off, especially since the tealette was in such a bad mood before she fell asleep. Gumi let a small smile flit across her face, at the very thought. At least she wouldn't be the only one suffering tonight. Len would be in pain too -

''Gumi!'' her brother waved his hand in front of her face, attracting her attention. He was holding a bucket and a mop. Grudgingly, Gumi took hold of the mop. She only liked cleanliness, not cleaning itself. Cleaning was nothing but a bothersome chore. Though cleanliness was nice, of course. _Damn you, Len. Damn you. This is all your fault. You planned this out, didn't you?_

_I hope Miku makes you suffer, Your Highness. _The tealette was fearsome when she was angry. And she was definitely angry at Len.

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_**Solitaryloner: **__Some Gumi time! I realised I never wrote from her point of view before, so I tried it out for once. She's quite amusing._

_Review? Review and I'll get the next chapter up faster. I bet you all want to know what will happen when Miku wakes up and realises that Len found her...and brought her back to his room...so that she could 'warm his bed'. Lol. Len. You make me laugh so hard, really._

_Warm his bed...heh. Anyway, review pls. I'm trying to hit the 100 reviews milestone!_


	11. Chapter 11

Miku groaned, turning over. The bed was so soft and comfortable. She smiled. She liked this -

Wait. Bed? No. She was supposed to be in a closet. In Gumi's closet. Why was she on such a soft, warm surface...slowly, she realised what must have happened. Len had clearly found her hiding in the closet. And he carried her all the way back here, to his room, to his bed...

She turned. Sure enough, her gaze clashed with a pair of cerulean eyes - Len was lying next to her, his head propped up on his fist. His face was completely expressionless. He was just...staring at her. Miku gritted her teeth. How dare he move her while she was asleep. She didn't want to be anywhere near the jerk right now. ''Why did you bring me back here?'' she asked him, her voice icy cold. He just tilted his head.

''Because you're my fiancée. Because I missed how warm you are,'' he answered, his blond hair falling carelessly over one eye. Suddenly, his hand reached out, his fingers sliding down her cheek, making her stiffen. ''You know,'' he whispered, ''I really don't like it when you run away from me...it hurts my feelings, Miku.''

''I couldn't care less about your feelings,'' she retorted, jerking away from him. His blue eyes regarded her coolly, and she resisted the urge to fidget. Suddenly, he smiled at her. That was strangely unnerving - she thought he would be angry at her. The way he was smiling...it was the look of someone who knew far more than he let on. The prince was so...frustrating.

''If you didn't care, you wouldn't even bother to stay around and talk to me,'' he said simply, knowing that he had caught her there. Miku bit her lip, knowing he was right - but she wasn't going to admit that to him. Narrowing her eyes at him, she turned away, preparing to slide off the bed - but she realised she couldn't move away from him. Her eyes darted to her wrist.

Then she blinked, wondering if her eyes were playing tricks on her. _Handcuffs...? _She stared down at the metal link, following it...the other end was attached to Len's wrist. He smirked lazily at her as she met his gaze, shocked. ''My lovely Cinderella...'' he reached out, running the back of his hand against her cheek, ''you didn't really think I would just let you leave, right?''

''Len, get this thing off me right now,'' she said, trying to make herself sound as cool and even as possible. Len just shrugged, his cerulean eyes dancing with amusement. She hated the look on his face - he looked like a cat who had just spotted a saucer full of cream. She tried to ease her wrist out of the handcuff, but even her tiny, slender wrist wasn't small enough to pass through it, and she growled in frustration.

''Why should I?'' he asked. ''That would defeat the purpose of me attaching a handcuff to you, no? Besides, I'm not sure where the key is. I guess we're stuck like this for the rest of the night,'' he smiled, letting his fingers run down the metal length connecting them. Miku hissed at him, her teeth bared. She was going to get back at him for this, one way or another.

''Miku, my sweet...don't be like this,'' the prince said silkily, leaning close to her. His cool breath washed against her face, making her shiver. She absolutely detested the way her body reacted to him - why didn't she flinch back in revulsion, why didn't she try to move away? ''Since we're going to be stuck together for the rest of the night, we might as well make the best of it,'' his eyes gleamed in the darkness.

''Go away,'' she spat out, turning her face away from him. She heard him chuckle. Infuriating jerk. ''I don't want to talk to you, Len. I haven't forgiven you for this afternoon,'' she added, looking up at the ceiling. At least the bed was more comfortable than Gumi's closet, she could safely say that. But the comfort wasn't enough for her to be happy about being stuck here.

She felt his arm loop around her waist, and suddenly he pulled her towards him, her back against his front. ''I'm truly sorry for whatever I did wrong, my sweet,'' he breathed into her ear, his arm tightening subtly around her. ''Forgive me for my transgression, Miku...'' she couldn't move. She didn't want to move. His body was just so warm. ''If you stay,'' he whispered, ''I promise that I'll get that handcuff off you.''

''And if I decide not to stay?'' she asked softly, her fingers clenching into fists. He laughed at her words, and she stiffened as she felt him lean forward, his lips brushing against her cheek. His lips lingered on her skin, and she tried hard not to shiver. She hated the hold he had over her. She hated him, but she couldn't live without him. She...knew that. She knew.

''You wouldn't be able to run away anyway,'' he raised the hand with his handcuff, lifting her own hand at the same time. She swallowed. It wasn't like she had a choice. He had never meant to give her a choice, had he? She didn't know whether or not she ought to hate him for this. It was a strangely...sweet gesture. Albeit in a twisted, warped and possessive kind of way. ''I'm not telling you where the key is.''

''Didn't you say you had no idea where it was?'' she demanded, turning her head to meet his gaze. He grinned down at her, then shrugged, his blue eyes still dancing with mischief. Those full lips were tilted into a smirk, like he was enjoying taunting her. He _was _taunting her. She was aware of that - but what could she do? He was the one holding the blasted key, not her.

''Maybe I lied,'' he said simply. ''Perhaps I do know where the key is, and I'm just making sure that you can't run away from me,'' he nuzzled into her neck, and she tilted her head, trying to edge away from him. His grip on her waist remained firm, and she couldn't leave him. ''Miku, sweet...'' came the whisper. ''I just want you to stay by my side tonight. Forever.''

''You're really possessive, Len,'' she finally said, turning away from him. It was something she had realised a long time ago, but she had never before given voice to that realisation. She felt him stiffen behind her. ''It's as though...almost as though you would kill me, if I didn't choose to remain by your side. But would you do such a thing, Len?'' she whispered. ''If I really left?''

His arm tightened around her, and she felt like she was about to suffocate. ''I would never do anything to hurt you,'' he answered, his voice filled with certainty. ''I can't say the same thing for those who try to steal you away from me, though,'' he added in a low mutter - so low that she almost missed what he said. Miku bit her lip. Didn't he understand that it was this...it was his possessiveness which choked her so?

''Len. You can't control who I talk to, and I won't let you try. Doing this won't work. You still don't know why I got angry at you, don't you?'' she met his startled gaze. ''Because you're just too...possessive. You want me all to yourself - you don't let me out of your sight for more than a second, and it's suffocating me, Len. I don't know whether I'm a toy or an actual human being to you. And I really hate not knowing.''

''You're not a toy to me,'' he automatically said. Her eyes narrowed slightly at him, and he looked away from her. ''Well...maybe I am a little possessive,'' he allowed grudgingly. ''But that's because you're my fiancée. _Mine. _And I don't like it when you smile at someone who isn't me. I had to work so hard to see you smile,'' he scowled. ''Yet you give my cousin those smiles of yours like they're nothing.''

She sighed. ''He was much kinder to me than you ever were,'' she said slowly. ''In case you forgot, at our very first meeting, you threatened me with a dagger. It didn't exactly leave me with a very good impression of you, Prince Romeo. It's natural that I would treat Dell better in return. And I am still your betrothed now, am I not? You have nothing to fear from Dell.''

''I know that. Logically,'' he muttered. ''But one cannot control their impulses, especially not when it comes to matters of the heart,'' he hesitated. ''Ever since young, I've never liked to share what belongs to me. It extended to my friends, to my toys, to everything...it is in my nature to be possessive of what I consider to be mine. You are not an exception to that, Miku.''

''Let's be honest with each other,'' she sighed. ''We are fiancé and fiancée, but we do not have any true love for each other...do we? We got engaged simply because it benefited both of us, to have such an arrangement. Not because we loved each other, or anything like that. If that is the case, then why would you care, even if I did run away with another man? You could always get a new bride. I'm someone replaceable.''

''You're not!'' the reply was so unexpected that she blinked, startled by the emotion in his words. He coughed, looking away from her - as though he was trying to cover up his sudden outburst. ''I mean...no, of course you're not replaceable,'' he slid his hand down her cheek, his arm finally unwinding from around her waist. ''You're Miku Hatsune. There's no one else like you. We're all one-of-a-kind, Miku.''

''I know that,'' she looked at her wrist. It was still connected to Len's. ''But you can get a new fiancée. I'm not someone particularly special or important to you, I know. And to be honest, I don't mind that you don't love me, since neither of us harbour true feelings for each other. If I'm a burden to you, then I don't mind leaving,'' she sighed. ''You still miss Juliet, don't you?''

''I...'' he fell silent. She felt her heart sink. She knew it. She had always known. She would never really be able to take a place in his heart, because Juliet had been there first, and she would have a hold over him for all of eternity. Miku was nothing but a substitute for his dead beloved, and she was a poor replacement at that. Since she looked nothing at all like Rin.

Rui, on the other hand, greatly resembled his deceased lover...maybe she shouldn't have been angry at him because of Rui. It wasn't his fault that he was hankering after a dead girl. She still didn't really understand why she was so upset that Len was spending time with Rui...but she thought that it was because his interest in another woman was a great blow to her pride. It showed that Miku wasn't good enough.

She would never be good enough for Len. For the prince. And that was...was it an insult? She wasn't even sure anymore. ''I have no more energy to waste on being angry at you,'' she said tiredly. ''We should...just think about our relationship, Len. If we're just making use of each other...my stepsisters are dead, and you have found out what you needed to know. We don't need to stay with each other anymore.''

''No,'' he answered, much to her surprise. ''I don't want to get another fiancée. I want you to be my bride, and no one else. Not even Rui. I know you suspect that I have feelings for her, but I really don't, Miku. Just because she looks like Rin...'' Len hesitated. ''I promised you that I would forget Rin. And I've never broken any of my promises to you before. Not once. Have I?''

She shook her head. She knew that whatever he promised her, he would see through. ''Then, if I promise you that I have no romantic feelings for Rui, would you believe me?'' he murmured into her ear, making her pause and think. Could she trust him? But why did he want to convince her so much? She was replaceable. She wasn't some precious treasure to him. Miku didn't think he even saw her as a person. More like a toy.

''I will trust you if you give me reasons to do such a thing,'' she finally said, as a compromise. _Why am I giving in to him again? _Len's free hand stroked her hair, as he tucked her against him, under his chin. He was so warm. That was one good thing she could say about him - he was so warm. When he held her at night...she hated to admit it, but he made her feel very...protected. Safe from any dangers or harm.

''I could never stay angry at you for long,'' she admitted, in a moment of weakness. Instantly, she wished she could take her words back - Len stiffened behind her, his breath cool against her neck. She didn't want to look at his face, at how he reacted to her words - she wished she could squirm away from him, but he wouldn't let go of her, she was certain. She swallowed.

''Really...?'' when he finally spoke, he sounded so...childlike. ''Every time you get angry or upset with me, I...'' he paused. ''I don't feel good,'' he mumbled, and she gasped as she felt him burying his face in her hair. ''I hated it. I hated that I made you cry, earlier. I...you're really important to me,'' he admitted quietly, ''but I don't know why. You're just...special. To me.''

''But you don't love me,'' that was a statement, not a question. He didn't answer, and in the end she just looked away from him, sighing. ''It doesn't matter, Len. You're my fiancé, and...I don't really want to change that. And even if I try to stay angry at you, I can't. My anger was mostly gone, when I went to hide in Gumi's closet,'' she laughed dryly. ''I just didn't want you to find me. I needed some time alone.''

''I didn't mean to upset you,'' he whispered, sounding almost frightened. ''I just saw you with Dell and...I was jealous,'' he muttered, causing her eyes to widen at the admission. ''You looked so happy with him. It's not fair. Why can't you be that happy while you're with me? I couldn't stand the sight of you being with him. I hated it. I hated you, at that moment. For making me feel this way. For being...you.''

''He's just a friend,'' she answered, closing her eyes. ''Nothing more than a good friend. All right? There's nothing to worry about. Besides, at the end of the day, you don't truly love me, nor do I genuinely love you. It doesn't matter whether or not I marry you. Does it, Len?''

''It matters,'' she thought she heard him say, but it was so softly-spoken that she couldn't be sure. She chose not to ask him if he had said anything. ''If you got angry because of how possessive I was, if it was all due to that kiss earlier...then I won't do this again,'' he told her, at his usual volume. She nodded. That was good enough for her. She didn't want him to treat her like she was an object, something he owned.

She was a person, not a toy to play around with. ''If I really do free you, will you promise to stay with me tonight?'' he asked, sounding...nervous, almost. She nodded - after all, she didn't have anywhere else to go, and she was too tired now to keep up with this petty feud. So long as she and Len managed to resolve their issues...

Len reached out to his bedside table, searching for something there. Then, his hand returned to the handcuffs. There was a 'click', and then the cuffs sprang open, releasing their wrists. She glanced up at him - weariness was written all over his face, and he looked...exhausted. He caught her looking, and his lips tilted up into a tired smile. ''I would never do anything to hurt you or make you suffer,'' he said once again.

''I know,'' was all she said in reply. He set the silver handcuffs aside, his eyes searching hers all the while. She didn't know what to do in this situation. Miku was tired, so tired. She didn't want to continue struggling anymore. He was draining her of her energy, and she didn't know whether that was a good or bad thing. To be his docile little fiancée? It wasn't in her nature...

Suddenly, he cupped her face, tilting it upwards. His lips met hers, soft and gentle - it was a sweet kiss, and she let her eyes close, feeling his mouth against hers. The kiss itself was chaste and innocent, and he pulled away from her after a moment or two. ''If I told you that I loved you,'' he whispered, ''what would you say to me in response?'' he sounded so serious.

Miku hesitated. ''I don't know,'' she answered truthfully. Something flickered through his eyes, so swiftly that she missed what emotion it was, and he nodded, his hands releasing her face. With that, he turned away from her, lying on his side of the bed. His back was towards her, and she couldn't see his face anymore. She bit her lip, wondering what that question meant.

''Good night, Len,'' she finally said, knowing that he did not wish to talk anymore. She didn't receive anything in reply, and she just sighed, lying prone next to him. She turned so that her back, too, was facing him. This was the first time she hadn't slept in his arms. Usually, he would hold her while they slept, and she found that...strangely, she already missed him. The way he held her tight, like she was precious...

She closed her eyes. It didn't matter whether or not Len chose to hold her while they slept. In the end, they didn't really love each other - if Len didn't want to hold her, then she wouldn't say anything. It was up to him, after all. It wasn't his responsibility or obligation to hug her while they were sleeping. He didn't love her, nor did she love him. That was all. But still...

Even though Len was sleeping by her side as always, to her, the bed felt strangely empty.

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_**Solitaryloner: **__See, I promised a fast update if I got reviews, and I didn't go back on my word! Here is the chapter. It's not as explosive and filled with Miku anger as most people would think. In fact, she's more confused than angry. And it's pretty much the same for Len..._

_At least he didn't call her his 'bed warmer' again in this chapter. Though he did end up using the handcuffs. Review please! I really appreciate all the reviews for the previous chapter. Thanks for 100 reviews, everyone!_


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